


Jason, his Little Sis Cass and her Friend Steph

by Write_No_Evil



Category: Batgirl (Comics), Batman (Comics), Batman - All Media Types, Batman and Robin Eternal (Comics), Red Hood/Arsenal (Comics), Red Hood: Lost Days, Robin (Comics), Under the Red Hood
Genre: Angst, Bat Bonding, Fluff, Gen, Implied/Referenced Suicide, Jason being nice, Jason is a good brother, Swearing, Triggers, batfamily, slight angst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-04-19
Updated: 2017-08-13
Packaged: 2018-06-03 06:54:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 28,730
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6601171
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Write_No_Evil/pseuds/Write_No_Evil
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The first time Stephanie breaks into Jason's safe house, she needs comforting, sad about the baby she gave up years ago. The second time, she's on her period. The third time she brings a friend. The fourth time, Jason's expecting her and doesn't greet her with a gun. They bond over the time they stay with each other, both girls surprised at how nice Jason is.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The First time

**Author's Note:**

> Trigger warning: this fic has a brief bit (the first paragraph only) about a teen attempting suicide. Please don't read this if it'll trigger you!!! There's also swearing.

The first time Stephanie snuck into his house, it was late even for them.

Jason sighed as he landed on the metal stairs outside one of his nicer safe houses. He could already hear the call of a long, hot shower and his bed. The male was beyond tired. His spare phone that he had bought and given the number out to kids who needed him, had been ringing for most of the night. One of the males he knew had been about to jump off a bridge and Jason had spent the last three hours talking on the phone to him, trying to convince him not to whilst he ran around the city trying to find him. Luckily, Jason had found him just before he could jump off and had pulled the scrawny boy into his arms, hugging him as he had cried into Jason's shoulder and told him, through the tears, about the bottle of pill he had overdosed on as well. Jason had immediately bundled him onto his motorbike and sped through the traffic and several red lights (he was sure he was going to get a few tickets but he would just pay for them using Bruce's accounts) reaching the Gotham General Hospital in time. The fear in the male's eyes had compelled him to stay as the nurses bustled around him, trying to save the kid. Jason had stayed by his side, comforting the teen when he needed it and holding his hand until the kid's parents arrived. Jason had hidden in the shadows long enough to make sure the parents weren't going to disown the kid before creeping out of the room through the window.

Gloved fingers fiddled with the lock on the window, Jason's tired brain not really up to the task of disabling the security. There had been a new drug gang rising in Crime Alley and Jason had spent the last three days trailing them and gathering intel on them, sleeping less than three hours on a good day. He had been planning to take them down tonight but the plan had been delayed. If he could do the night again he would still go the boy's aid without hesitation. Unlike Bruce, he didn't put the mission first. Speaking of Bruce, he hadn't had any recent arguments with him, which brought his guard down since he was sure no one would have broken into his house to talk to him about his methods. This certainty stopped him from checking to see if the system had reported any break-ins.

His helmet was off by the time he registered the other's presence. Jason's fingers on his right hand crept to his gun on his thigh, silently taking it out and clicking the safety off. He decided against putting his helmet on, the protection and visibility it granted were not worth the hassle of sliding it on. If all went well, the person would be dead before they knew they had been hit. The vigilante gently placed his helmet on the table, freeing his other hand so he could hold another gun. As he crept closer to the intruder, he realised the TV was on. He raised an eyebrow at that, the person was good enough to break in to his apartment but stupid enough to put a noisy thing on. Jason shrugged, it made it much easier for him to creep up on them though so he wasn't complaining. With guns in both hands, he turned into the living room guns pointing at the figure laid out on his sofa.

"WAIT!!! Wait it's just me!!" Stephanie yelled, upper body rushing up off the sofa as her hands shot out towards him to stop him shooting at her. He didn't lower the guns or click the safety on.

"What are you doing here?" He asked, glaring at her. She bit her lips and looked hesitant to answer him. "If Bruce or Goldie sent ya here then you can tell them to go fuck themselves. Get out. Now."

"Wait, please don't. I wasn't sure where else to go and I don't want to be on my own," Stephanie begged him. Jason knew he could look and act mean but he was surprised when the blonde girl in front of him started crying. He felt guilty and like a jerk. The male sighed and holstered his guns, running a hand through his hair and glanced away. Jason didn't know much about the girl in front of him. All he knew was that she and Tim had or were a thing and she had been the next to be called Robin after Tim. She had also been another casualty in Bruce's crusade against crime, though she had survived her beating.

"Look. Please don't kick me out," she took a deep shuddering breath and spoke quickly. "You know I was pregnant and I gave the baby up but sometimes-"

"Wait, you had a baby?" Steph faltered at that.

"Oh, yeah. I thought you knew. Anyways-"

"Is it Replacement's?" Steph's face wrinkled at that.

"No! We made out but never went that far," she dulled back down after the exclamation, her spark leaving again. "Sometimes I think I did the wrong thing. I just get sad knowing I'll never be a part of my baby's life and all that."

Jason turned and began to walk away. Steph's face fell even more. She sighed, her shoulders slumping down in defeat, and turned to the sofa where her cape, belt, boots and outer armour were to begin to put them back on, having taken them off as they were uncomfortable to lie in, "Guess they were right when they said you were a jerk," she muttered under her breath. The blonde bundled her cape up around her arms and hurried to the window she had snuck in through. Steph kept her head down, humiliated at being rejected when she had shown her weak side. She just wanted to leave. Before she could get to the window, Jason reappeared standing in front of her with a white plate in his hands and blocking the exit. She looked up at him, tears lining her eyes. Standing at 5'7'', she was still tiny compared to Jason who looked down at her, an eyebrow raised at her sudden desire to leave.

"Where you goin'?" He asked.

"A-away," Steph answered him, sniffing slightly. Jason moved forward, the plate digging into Steph's chest, directly into the bat symbol. She shuffled back as Jason continued to push her back into the living room. When she was standing in front of the sofa, she smelt the cookies beneath her nose.

"Wait! Are those Alfred's choc chip cookies?" She asked, eyes widening.

"Took yer time," Jason smirked and offered the plate to her. She took it and fell onto the sofa, shoving one into her mouth and groaning at the taste. Jason followed her and sat next to her on the sofa.

"Alfred gave you the recipe? He never gives anyone the recipe. I would know, I've asked a hundred bloody times," she pouted.

"He loves me the most obviously," Jason teased. He leant back, naturally tossing an arm over the sofa top. Steph flinched at the action, body moving into a slightly defensive position.

"Relax, I'm not gonna hurt ya," he told her. She looked at him suspiciously but settled down and continued eating the cookies. It was quiet for a while, neither knowing what to say.

"I don't even know the baby's gender," she admitted in a whisper. Jason turned to look at her, letting her speak at her own pace. "I had a nightmare. There were complications and they put me under. I dreamt that a villain took my baby from me," she told him, her knees curling up under her chin. She was silent for a while. "Am I a bad mom?"

"What!? Steph no!" Jason turned to face her properly, grabbing her shoulders and turning her to look at him. "You are _not_ a bad mom. You gave your child away because you knew you lived a dangerous life that wasn't fit for a child. You did the right thing, putting them up for adoption, they're safe that way. Nothing can hurt them. And you're not a bad person. Far from it. You threw yourself into this lifestyle to stop your father. You're not like me or Dick, Bruce picked us; we had some sort of training before being Robin, he didn't pick you. You didn't have any training, yet you still stopped your father. You're are so brave, fighting people with so little training. That baby should be proud they have you for a mom."

"Thanks. I guess I needed that. I know that I did the right thing, what we do gets us a lot of enemies who wouldn't mind hurting a few children to get to us, but," her arms tightened around her knees. "Sometimes I wish I kept my child." The tears fell down again as she thought of the child she never got to raise. Jason manoeuvred his arm to rest over her shoulders, bringing her closer to his chest so he could rub her arm as she sobbed into his chest. Eventually, Steph's tears subsided but she didn't leave his embrace. Steph rested a bit more of her weight on him, Jason flinching as she leant on a fresh bruise. Steph pulled back immediately, as much as she could with his arm around her, panic in her eyes.

"Are you okay? Did I hurt you? I'm so sorry!"

"It's fine really," Jason assured her. She still looked at him, guilty that she had hurt him. "It's fine, you leant on a new bruise. Just don't lean here and we'll be fine," he traced a Y shape on his front, a line from his left shoulder to the middle of his chest, then connected another line from his right shoulder to the middle of his chest and dragged it down his stomach, showing her where not to lean. Neither of them mentioned that it was the shape of a cut of an autopsied body. Steph nodded and carefully leant her head on his chest, being careful not to hurt him. He huffed and crushed her head to his chest, caging it there with his arm. Her consequent squeal and raised leg as she struggled out of his hold made him laugh.

"I ain't made out of glass. I'm not gonna break if yer touch me," Steph relaxed and smiled up at him, her legs stretching out along the sofa. Jason picked up the remote and turned the volume up.

"Whatcha wanna watch?" He asked, scrolling through his collection of movies. "Comedy? Romcom?"

"Comedy,  please," Steph watched him go through the options, making faces or speaking her opinions on some of them. Eventually, they settled for Bad Neighbors. Steph lounged on Jason, his fingers carding through her blonde hair as he watched it. Half way though he noticed she hadn't made a noise and looked down to see her sleeping. The crying must have taken out a lot of her. He turned the TV off and gently picked her up, carrying her to the spare room and  placed her down on the bed. Jason took off her boots, Steph having already taken off her cape and belt and making him feel less like a pervert. He tugged the covers up and left her to sleep, walking to his room to sleep.

* * *

Steph woke up to an unfamiliar room. She bolted up- it was not the first she had woken up to find herself a hostage in an unknown location. The events of yesterday flooded through her and she groaned into her palms as she recalled sobbing into the Red Hood's chest. She pulled back the covers and tugged her boots on, grabbing her belt and cape that were draped over the chair as she made her way to the door. She sneakily moved out of the room and into the corridor, walking to the window she had entered in the previous night. The blonde girl hopefully wished that she was up before Jason so he wouldn't shove it in her face that she had cried on him. He had been oddly nice to her last night and she didn't want him to suddenly turn on her. Steph was a pretty good fighter but she knew she couldn't take Jason on, he was much too big and strong for her. Even Batman had trouble fighting him and he had much more experience fighting than she had.

Steph was opening the window when she sniffed the air. Her attention snapped away from the window, and her escape, and she ran in the direction of the smell, sniffing the air as she went just like a dog.

"Are those what I think they are?" She asked, standing in the doorway of the kitchen. Jason turned from the stove, looking over his shoulder at the grinning girl. He rolled his eyes.

"You really do take yer time," he snorted, turning back to the food cooking in front of him making sure not to burn them. "There's a pile already on the table." He nodded to the pile of waffles on a plate on the table, chocolate syrup already set out. Steph skipped to the table, sitting down in front of the pile of food and grinning madly.

"Wait. You didn't poison them, did ya?" Jason rolled his eyes, taking the saucepan with him as he moved to stand next to Steph's seated body. He grabbed a fork and stabbed the top waffle, ripping a piece off and shoving it in his mouth.

"'At guff enouf fer ya?" He asked, trying not to burn his mouth. Steph nodded, picking up her knife and fork, ready to dig in. She stopped, a thought occurring to her.

"Wait-"

"What now?"

"Did Alfred teach you how to cook waffles?" She asked. Jason chuckled at that.

"Nah, I got taught by someone else. I'm guessing none of you have the guts to tell him his waffles suck."

"Of course not! He feeds us! Great food at that. It'll hurt his feelings too much." Jason placed the pan back on the stove and sat next to Steph.

"Tastes like cardboard."

" _Sooo_ soggy," Steph complained. She smothered her pile of waffles with chocolate sauce and dug in. A bite later and she was closing her eyes and moaning at the taste.

"Deez are amaving!" She cried, talking with her mouth full and tried to shovel more in. Jason laughed, leaning his chin on his hand that was propped up on the table. He drank his coffee and watched her eat his food, a small happy smile on his lips as she enjoyed it. Once they were finished, she patted her tummy.

"Thanks! They were really nice!" She praised him. She got up, stretching and sighed when her joints popped. "Well, I better go now." Jason followed her to the window, keeping it up for her as she crawled out of the window. She turned back once she was standing on the metal balcony and looked at him through the glass, "Thanks Jason, for everything. They're all wrong about you, ya not as bad as they say you are." She turned, firing her grappling hook at the roof and swung off before he could say thank you. Jason smiled and watched her go, turning back to his quiet safe house and picked up his plans to bring down the drug gang, trying to forget how quiet it now was.


	2. The Second Time

The second time Stephanie snuck into his safe house, it was half way through her patrol.

He hadn't gone on patrol, having taken a stray bullet for his replacement and had not been in a fit enough shape to go on patrol. Alfred had requested him not to go and who was he to go against the old man's wishes? A noise to his left had him pointing his gun in that direction.

"WAIT!!! Wait! Don't shoot, it's me!" Stephanie shouted, palms facing him as she awkwardly crawled into the room. Jason peered at her, half-in half-out the room and resting on the windowsill on her hipbones, her legs kicking wildly out behind her.

"You know you look like an idiot, right?" Jason asked her, getting up to help her in. He pulled her through the open window, one hand holding her upper right arm as he dragged her through, his other arm wrapping underneath her waist and catching her as she dropped down. He waited for her to drop her legs down and stop clutching at his biceps but she refused to let go. He sighed and threw her up, catching her so he could carry her in a higher, less awkward position over to the sofa. Jason unceremoniously dropped her belly first onto the sofa. She hissed in discomfort, rolling onto her side and rubbed her belly. He raised an eyebrow at her actions and Steph gasped at it.

"Eyebrow game is on point," she squeaked and he rolled his eyes at her immaturity.

"You ain't pregnant again, are yer?" He asked as he watched her groan and curled up into a ball, stroking her belly.

"No. Kinda wish I was though, I wouldn't have to suffer through this!" She moaned, grimacing in pain.

"You on yer...period?" He asked. Stephanie nodded. "Why are yer here? Why are you patrolling if you're in pain?"

"I gotta patrol, people may get hur' if I don't. An' as for why I'm here, you were the closest." Jason sighed as she closed her eyes in pain, curling even tighter.

"Does it ...hurt?" He asked. Steph opened her eyes and glared at him. "Sorry."

Jason got up and walked into his kitchen. He put the kettle on and grabbed a mug with a cute bunny design and placed a teabag in it. He then moved to a drawer on the bottom, kneeling in front of it and pulled it out. Jason leant over it and grabbed a few things out of it and them next to the mug before pouring the boiled water into it, leaving it for a few minutes as he rifled through another cabinet. He grabbed what he was looking for and then took out the teabag. The male placed the mug, a small jug of milk, a small pot of sugar cubes and the stuff he had gathered from the drawer onto a tray and walked back to where Steph was curled up. She unfurled, sitting up as he placed the tray down on the glass table in front of her.

"I guess we know who to turn to for Alfred's job if he ever leaves," she joked, looking at the tray of stuff in front of her. "What's all this?"

"Cramp Bark herbal tea for cramps, pains and tensions, water to stay hydrated and for the painkillers which are for the cramps, chocolate to help yer survive the Hell your body is putting you through, heat pack for the aches, chocolate raisins 'cos raisins are healthy and you're still a vigilante and celery and hummus to help with bloating and sleeping," Jason pointed out each one. Steph whistled, popping the pills first and drinking half of the water in one go. She moved onto the tea, pouring milk and three sugar cubes into her drink.

"How do you know all of this?" She asked, looking at him over the rim of her mug. "And why does this have a bunny? A skull, yes, but a bunny?"

"Whenever me mom got bad, real bad, I'd take care of her. Eventually, I learnt the things that helped her," they stayed in silence for a few minutes, Stephanie shocked that Jason had opened up to her about his mother. He kept a tight lid on his past especially when it came to his mother, he loved her too much to share her with the rest of them. Or maybe she was a part of his life from before the crime fighting and he wanted to keep her there. "The mug helps comfort the children I bring here sometimes," he smirked.  "Yer not the only gurl to come into my house."

Steph began to eat the food he had given her. Jason reached onto the floor to grab his laptop he had placed there when he had gone to haul Steph into the room and went through the notes he had made on a case. Steph's feet stretched out over the sofa, her legs long enough for her feet to graze his thigh. She had taken her shoes off a while ago. Absently, one of Jason's hands moved to her feet beginning to rub her heels, putting enough pressure to make her moan, her eyes closing in delight as he rubbed her aches away. They continued sitting like that, Steph enjoying the foot massage, for a few more minutes. Jason picked up the remote, pointing it at the TV and flicking it on. He typed on his laptop and YouTube appeared on the TV screen.

"Woah. You have one those real cool TVs!" Steph exclaimed impressed. "How did you afford tha'?"

"Killed a King and held his daughter for ransom," Jason replied. He looked over at Steph, her eyes bulging out of her sockets and mouth hanging open. "I'm jokin'! I hacked into one of Bruce's accounts and stole some money." He laughed at Steph's face.

"Ya gotta teach me tha' one day," she told him. Jason hummed.

"Watcha wanna watch? There ain't enough time ter watch a movie but we can always watch one of those fail compilations. Or Instant Karma ones. They always make me laugh," he suggested.

"I like watchin' those Try Not To Laugh Impossible ones. They crack me up every time," Steph told him. Jason speedily typed it into the search bar and clicked the first one, settling down to watch it.

* * *

Five videos later and Steph rolled off of the sofa, landing on her feet and stretching, deciding it was finally time to get back on patrol.

"Thanks for all tha'," she rubbed her stomach. "That tea really worked!" Jason uncrossed his feet from where they had been laying, ankle over ankle on the table, and dropped them to the ground so Steph could pass by. He placed the laptop onto the middle sofa cushion.

"Wait!" He called out, Steph halting and turning back to see what he wanted. He walked back to the kitchen and grabbed a handful of teabags and chopped a few more sticks of celery. He grabbed another bag of chocolate raisins and the half bar of chocolate and then carried them to where Steph was waiting, handing them to her. Her eyes lit up as she spied the teabags.

"Ohmegod. Thank you!!" She grinned, packing the stuff into her utility belt. "You're basically a soccer mom."

"Do soccer moms shoot people? Cos I'm abouta shoot you," Jason told her. She grinned at him then hesitated for a second. After a speedily internal debate, Steph stepped closer to him, reaching up on tiptoes to press a kiss to his cheek.

"Thanks, Jason." She told him, climbing out of the window more nimbly than when she had entered. Once again she was swinging away before he had time to react. He watched her go, a hand on the kissed cheek, staring dumbly out of the window. A smile curled slowly on his lips, he was beginning to enjoy her presence.


	3. The New Intruder

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ~Warning: there are a few swears in this~

The third time Stephanie snuck into his safe house she broke the unofficial, unspoken rule. She brought someone with her.

The noise of the window opening- Jason, after buying the house, had gone through every door and window frame and made sure they would squeak if they were opened- had him grabbing the gun in his drawer and walking out of the kitchen with it facing it front of him. Stephanie was half way through clambering in through the window, a black figure behind her. The moment it saw the gun in his hands, it threw itself at Stephanie making her squeal and drop into the apartment floor. The better lighting inside his safe house showed it was Black Bat crouching over Batgirl. Jason guessed she had moved to protect Steph, thinking he was going to shoot her. He lowered the gun, putting it out to the side and holding it by the finger curled around the trigger, showing her he wasn't going to shoot. Jason ran his eyes over them, doing a quick search of their bodies to make sure they were okay. He noticed how Cass put less weight on her right ankle as she crouched over Steph but didn't say anything about it.  
  
"Hey, hey, Cass! It's fine. He ain't gunna shoot me," Steph told her. Cass glared at him conveying it through both her face and body but shifted off Steph, letting the blonde push herself up.  
  
"What the hell are you two doin' here?" Jason asked, noticing the graze on her cheek and her bloody lip.  
  
"You were the closest," Steph replied casually, walking to the sofa and sitting down on it. She looked over at Cass and patted the seat next to her in an invitation. Cass didn't move.  
  
"Don't worry, it's perfectly safe," she told her. Cass took a good look around the room before eventually walking to where Steph sat, concealing her limp almost expertly. Jason still noticed it. He turned and walked back into the kitchen.  
  
"Yeah he does that a lot," Steph spoke, probably to Cass. Jason opened up his freezer and grabbed one of the bags of ice he had put there specifically for bruises and swollen injuries and poured some ice cubes onto a tea cloth. He then walked to the cabinet above and to the left of his stove and grabbed the green first aid kit. Jason walked out of the kitchen, grabbing the cloth of ice as he left. Back in the living room, he threw the tea cloth at Cass, the female easily catching it.  
  
"It's ice. For yer ankle," he told her as he sat on the glass table in front of Stephanie. Cass still unfolded the cloth to check. She watched Jason as he opened the box and took out a gauze pad and a bottle of antibacterial liquid. He cleaned the scratch along Steph's face, one hand at the top of her head to move it. She had discarded her cowl whilst he had been in the kitchen and he could feel how soft her hair was.  
  
"Should I be impressed that someone managed to hurt Cass or scared?" He asked as he wiped her cheek. Steph beamed at him.  
  
"Why, thank you! The scary Red Hood's impressed by moi," she said, grinning. Jason rose his eyebrow and she gasped as he did it. "Eyebrow game is strong in this one."  
  
"Care to explain," Steph opened her mouth and Jason rushed to stop her. "About Cass' injury, not me eyebrow game." Steph pouted but told him anyway.  
  
"Well, you know we play roof top tag," Steph paused for a second. "That's where you play tag on the roof-"  
  
"I know Steph. I was once a Robin too." Steph smiled in apology.  
  
"Sorry. So yeah. And me and Cass were playin' and I was it and I thought it would be a good idea to tackle her. But I tackled her onto an old roof which collapsed and we fell. I scraped my cheek on the bricks as I fell and Cass landed on her ankle and sprained it." She nodded at Cass who had finally deemed the cloth safe and had undone her boot to place the cold compress on her ankle. Jason stuck the gauze on Steph's cheek, ripping the sticky tape with his teeth and sticking the pad onto her cheek. Once it was done, he threw everything into the green box and stood up, walking to grab his helmet off the kitchen table.  
  
He sat down on the one man chair that faced the shorter end of the rectangular table, putting his helmet on his lap and began to fiddle with it with a screwdriver.  
  
"Watcha doin'?" Steph asked.  
  
"Fixing me helmet. It's got a bug or somin'," he told her eyes never leaving his helmet.  
  
"Do you think it's wise fer you to mess about with it? You should give it to one of 'em tech nerds. Tim or Babs would know what's wrong with it. It might not even be broken," Steph told him. Jason flipped the screwdriver in his hand, holding the handlr in his hand with the long metal bar angled away from his fist so it ran parallel to his forearm. He brought it up so it faced Steph and mimed stabbing her. Steph laughed.  
  
"I'm just sayin'," she spoke, hands raising up in surrender. "You may accidentally break it." Jason threw the screwdriver at her, Cass reaching out and catching it before it was even close to Steph. He knew that what little trust he had gained from giving her the ice and patching up Steph had been ruined by the action. Her trust level towards him was probably minus a million.  
  
"One, I know there's a glitch in the system. And two, I can fix this helmet. Bruce trained me in shit like this," Jason told her, prying a part of the helmet off to get to the electronics beneath.  
  
"Yeah, but how do you know for certain that there's a glitch?" She asked.  
  
"'Cuz I couldn't see anything from me left eye!" Jason told her, slightly exasperated. Steph and Cass looked at him in shock. He had fought so well in patrol and his depth perception hadn't seemed to be bad when he had fired his grappling hooks, that none of them had picked up on him having any disability. "Pass me the screwdriver please."  
  
Steph's left hand groped blindly for the metal device, patting the cushion until she found it and tossed it to him, not taking her eyes off him the entire time.  
  
"But... but you fought so well! How could block all the hits when you were half blind?" She asked. Jason shrugged as he went back to his helmet.  
  
"Been doin' this fer a long time. Muscle memory and sensing what's goin' on around me blind spots," he told her, concentrating on the broken helmet in his hand. Steph shook her head at him.  
  
"You sir, are somthin' else." She watched him tinker around for a bit then stood up and walk to the kitchen. Cass turned her head slightly, so she could see Steph in her peripheral vision whilst she looked at Jason. She wasn't going to make the mistake of letting him out of her sight. Steph rummaged around the kitchen, muttering to herself as she went along. A door opened.  
  
"Not that fridge," Jason called out, eyes glued to the helmet. Steph shut the middle door and opened the door on the right. "Not that fridge either." Again his eyes didn't leave the helmet. Steph closed the door and moved to the fridge on the left, opening it and taking something out before continuing to bustle about.  
  
"Yer know, it's rude to stare," Jason mused, finally looking up at Cass. "Yer lookin' 'cuz I'm the big bad wolf and you don't wanna let me outta yer eyesight in case I try ta kill one of yer," he paused. "Or maybe it's the hair," he pulled on the patch of white hair that was on the other side of painless. "Or maybe it's the eyes." He looked at her, his usual smug, confident look falling off his face as his eyes narrowed in a glare, his green eyes burning with anger. It was emphasised by him tapping the metal end of the screwdriver uncomfortably close to his eye. Cass suddenly knew why people were so scared of him. He looked terrifying and deadly. "Guess it's the price yer pay for gettin' dunked into the Lazarus Pit for over five minutes straight." Cass looked away, his words and stare making her uncomfortable. Before she could try and say anything, Steph walked back in with a plate of cookies and glasses of milk.  
  
"Jason's cookies are amazin'. All his cooking is, actually. He makes a killer waffle," Steph told her, offering the plate to her friend. Cass took one cautiously, looking to see if it was poisoned. Steph, meanwhile, ate it without even looking at it. "If's not poiferned," she told her with a mouthful of cookie. Cass didn't look convinced. She was happy her new costume didn't include a cowl that covered her entire face, removing it to eat was a pain. Cass brought the cookie up to her nose and sniffed it. Instead of smelling poison, though she doubted he would use a poison that had a scent, all she smelt was Alfred's cookies. Her surprise must have shown because Steph was suddenly laughing.  
  
"Yeah, just like Alfred's." Cass took a small bite, eyes closing involuntary as the gooey chunks of chocolate melted in her mouth. She took a larger bite, an even larger bite afterwards then reached for another cookie. Jason chuckled at them as Steph taught her the art of dunking a cookie in milk.  
  
After all the cookies were gone, Jason sadly missing out on eating them, too busy with his helmet, Steph turned on the TV and began flicking through the channels. Her constant chatter kept an awkward silence at bay. They watched a programme for a while, the three of them relaxing after patrol.  
  
"Yo, Jason, don't suppose you'll give me another foot massage?" Steph asked, wiggling her feet at him. Jason pulled a disgusted face but stood up regardless, crossing to the sofa they were sitting on. He fell onto the sofa, Steph just being quick enough to pull her legs up to her chest to avoid being sat on. "Oh, I didn't think you were actually gonna do it."  
  
"Just gimme yer goddamn feet." She propped her feet onto his lap, leaning her back on Cass as they continued to watch the programme on the screen, Jason's fingers kneading the tension out of her feet.  
  
"Okay, how are ya so good at these?!" She asked as the pains in her feet died down. Jason threw an infuriating smirk and said nothing. "Cass, you really need to get a massage from him."  
  
"No... thank you," she said. Steph shrugged.  
  
"Your loss." The programme ended a little while later and they waited for the next episode to play. Jason's stomach rumbled loudly, causing Steph to laugh.  
  
"My God, that was loud!" She grinned.  
  
"Shatap. I was makin' some food for meself but you two interrupted me," Jason defended himself. "I'm hungry."  
  
"I ... too am.. hungry," Cass spoke up.  
  
"Well if you're both hungry, then I guess I'll hafta allow you two to eat," Steph joked. "I'm in the mood for pizza. What do you lot want?"  
  
"Peetsa .... sounds nice..." Cass said.  
  
"Don't care what we eat as long as we eat. I've gone hungry for long enough, I ain't gonna go another night starving," Jason told them. Steph once again felt the pain and sorrow she felt for Jason. Even though she too had grown up in Crime Alley, she had always had a roof over her shoulders and normally food for her to eat. There were a few times she had gone to bed hungry but it wasn't too often, her mother bulk buying macaroni cheese so she could have something to eat when her mother was too drugged up to cook, even if was full of bad chemicals.  
  
"Where do you keep your takeout menus?" She asked Jason.  
  
"Drawer next to the oven," Jason informed. Steph got up and walked into the kitchen, flicking the lights on and made her way the drawer. There were two drawers on either side of the oven and she picked the right one, knowing Jason was right handed and so probably would stash them in the right drawer. She opened the drawer with a flick of her wrist and saw a scattering of paper money in dollars, pounds, yen, euros and a few other currencies as well as passports and ID for several different countries and people, the only thing they had in common was the picture of Jason. A tea towel was folded at the back, an odd place to be. She could see a bump in the material and pulled the top layer back to see a gun. She didn't need to check it to know it was loaded. Next to the gun was a knife. Steph pulled back the second layer of material to find two more knives and throwing stars. The next layer hid two sais and the last one hid two nunchucks that were black and had a silver dragon on the baton, both ending with a curved blade. Steph stepped back remembering that she was in a house of a killer. She looked around the kitchen, suddenly seeing the hidden weapons, all sharp and more than easily capable of killing. She closed the drawer and opened the one on the other side, finding the menus and picking the first pizza one she saw. She scurried back to the living room, trying to mask how unsettled she was.  
  
"Alright, I've got one." She jumped over the back of the sofa and landed in the middle. "What do you want?"  
  
"14-inch peri peri chicken please," Jason told her.  
  
"Ohh that would be nice."  
  
"Oh, I was ordering for myself."  
  
"You can eat a pizza that large?" She asked.  
  
"What? I'm still a growing boy. And I'm a crime fighter, we need a lot of calories," Jason smirked at her. She huffed and rolled her eyes, turning to Cass to help her read through the menu and pick something she wanted. Jason walked over to the phone cradle, picking up the phone and tossing it to Steph so she could make the call.  
  
"Where is it being delivered to?" She asked.  
  
"Mouth of this alley. Yer place the money down a minute or so before they arrive and they take the money and leave the pizza behind," Jason told her. Steph 'oooh'ed and punched in the number, placing their order and telling them where to deliver.  
  
"It'll be here in fifteen minutes," she announced after hanging up. Jason nodded and grabbed his wallet, taking a 20 dollar bill out and handed it to Steph.  
  
"I can't take this," Steph protested.  
  
"You're my guests. It'd be rude if I made yer pay."  
  
"But we're the ones who barged our way in here and ate all your food. We should be the one to pay." Cass nodded with her.  
  
"It's my treat."  
  
"Nuh uh,"  
  
"Stephanie Brown, I will shove this note down your throat if I have to." Cass tensed at the threat but Steph reluctantly took the bill. When it was three minutes before the pizza would arrive, she snuck out and placed the money on the floor underneath a brick so it wouldn't fly away, keeping close to it to make sure it wouldn't be stolen by someone. The pizza girl arrived and took the money, placing the pizzas next to the brick. Steph smiled and skipped to the pizzas, grabbing it and moving back to Jason's safe house.  
  
"I have pizzas," she called out, wiggling through the window. Cass moved to stand up and help her put Jason placed a hand on her shoulder, stilling her. He nodded to her twisted ankle and got up to take the pizzas off of Steph. They walked back to the sofa and gently threw the pizzas onto the table.  
  
"Don't suppose you have plates?" Steph asked. Jason sighed and walked off to the kitchen to get plates and paper towels. Whilst he was away, Steph ran to where his jacket was hung near the door and placed a 20 dollar bill in the right pocket. She ran back to the sofa, throwing herself onto it as Jason walked back in with plates. He handed them all one and opened his pizza box, taking three slices out and plopping them onto his plate. Cass and Steph had decided to share one and began to eat their ham and pineapple pizza. Jason gave them two slices of his, taken one of theirs as well. They ate in a comfortable silence, enjoying each other's presence and the food. When the pizzas were all gone, Cass and Steph rose, knowing they had already spent too long with him. They took their and his plates into the kitchen, Jason walking in a half a minute later with the pizza boxes to put them in the bin.  
  
"You want a drink or somein' before yer leave?" He asked. Cass nodded and he got a glass down and filled it with water. This time, she didn't check to see if he had poisoned it, maybe because she had watched him get a glass and water. Once she had drunk it, she placed it into the sink and walked back to the living room. She was back a few seconds later with the wet tea towel that had had ice in it. She gave it to Jason, bowing in thanks knowing he would understand the action. Jason bowed his head in return and they all walked back to the living room. Jason folded himself over the sofa top, reaching down and grabbing the remote to turn the TV off as the girls put on their cowls and boots. He escorted them to the window.  
  
"Yeah, well you know where I am. If yer ever need me, the window's always open."  
  
"Will there also be a gun pointing at us?" Steph teased.  
  
"If yer keep that up then yeah," Jason joked. Cass had already hopped through the window and was waiting patiently for Stephanie on the metal balcony outside. Jason slung an arm around Steph's shoulders, pulling her into his side in a hug. Steph smiled and wrapped both arms around the middle of his torso.  
  
"You two stay safe, yeah. And no more rooftop tag on old buildings, ya hear?" Jason told them. Steph laughed.  
  
"Soccer mom," she teased, slipping through the gap and onto the balcony next to Cass. "See ya later, alligator."  
  
"In a while crocodile," Jason replied, finally able to say something before she left, even if it was something stupid. Steph laughed as she swung away, a belly deep, breathtaking, bone aching laugh that had Jason grinning at as he watched them sail away.

* * *

Steph and Cass ran along the building tops, making their way the Bell Tower where Oracle was.  
  
"So, how was he?" Steph asked.  
  
"He... was not... what I....." She furrowed her eyebrows as she tried to think of the word.  
  
"Expected?" Steph asked. Cass nodded. "Yeah, same. When I went there first I was scared he was gunna kick me out or punch me. Or both. But he's actually really nice. Sure he kills and does bad stuff, but he is a nice person. A nice, sweet caring person. I kinda wish I hung out with him earlier, he's real cool. Not like how Tim or Bruce or Dick or even Babs told me he was like." Cass nodded again.  
  
"Look in... your... right pocket," she advised. Steph stopped and reached into the pocket, confusion melting as her fingers met a crisp note.  
  
"Sunova bitch!" She swore. Cass laughed at her. "You saw him do it, din't yer?"  
  
"When he ... hugged you," Cass told her, smiling at the pissed off look on her friend's face. Steph continued to grumble as they made their way back to Oracle, plotting ways to sneak the note back to him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And Cass finally enters!!! Just wanna say a big thank you to all who have commented on it and/or have given kudos. This is one my favourite stories I've written and I'm happy that others are enjoying it as well!!


	4. The Cooking Lesson

The fourth time Steph snuck into his safe house was also a first for Jason. When Steph dropped to the floor, Cass, as always, following silently behind her, Jason didn't greet them with a gun.

"Wait, no gun?" Steph asked. "I am disappointed."

"Next time I'll greet yer with one then," he told her.

"Ah yes because all girls just _lurve_ to come home after a tiring patrol to a gun in their face," Steph teased. Jason's left hand grabbed the black Taurus 738 TCP he always kept by his side, awake and asleep, and threw it at the blonde girl. The force behind the gun sent it flying at her faster than she could react and before she could catch it, it hit her forehead with a dull thunk, falling to the wooden floor with a clatter.

"Reflexes of a cat," Jason remarked.

"Har-har. You're not getting this back," Steph told him, bending down to scoop it off the ground as she walked over to the male and unceremoniously dropped onto the sofa, her back falling onto Jason. She shifted slightly, moving to lean more comfortably on his left side and putting her legs up to lay on the rest of unoccupied sofa. Cass smiled and sat on the one man seat near to them. These were now their seat, with Jason sitting on the far right of the sofa and Steph sitting perpendicular to him, her legs almost always stretched out along the rest of the seat whilst Cass sat on the chair that was in front of the window. Sometimes she would spice it up, though, and sit in the far left seat of the sofa, forcing Steph to sit on the sofa normally, much to the blonde's complaints.

"Oh come on! I'm gonna hafta throw something else at yer now."

"Like what?" Steph asked, sassily placing a hand on her hip when she saw that Jason didn't have anything around him to throw at her.

"Cass throw somethin' at her."

"Hah! You really think my _best_ friend would throw som- UFFF-- CASS!!!" Steph shrieked as the cushion hit her in the face and fell onto her lap. Jason burst out laughing at her face, Cass grinning as well.

"Thanks, Cass, yer the best," Jason looked at Steph, smiling smugly. "The best _sister_." Steph stuck her tongue out at him.

"Mature," Jason sneered. Steph blew a raspberry at him.

"Why weren't you on patrol?" Steph asked, acting her age again. Cass looked at him, also intrigued at his absence.

"I'm layin' low since me last mission."

"Oh yeah, I think Bruce is out fer blood." Steph stuck her two pointer fingers in her mouth, fingertips facing the ground as she pretended to be a vampire.

"Killing... is ... bad... J-ayson," Cass told him sternly. She stared at him for a few minutes but then glanced away. "Did... miss you ... though," she admitted.

"Naww you're breakin' me 'eart," he told her grinning. He wouldn't admit it, but he too had missed them. They had become closer, something that was bound to happen with them crashing at his safe house every other week. He had started to accompany them on certain parts of his patrol, not because he thought they couldn't handle themselves (Steph was a good fighter and she had Cass at her back) but because they were the parts where his patrol would cross theirs or was closer to theirs. It was fun swinging with them and knocking out a few bad guys, Steph's and his banter filling the space as Cass watched them with a smile on her face and occasionally inputting something into the conversation. He was comfortable in their presence and he knew Cass was also gradually warming up to him. Next time they patrolled, he was going to invite them to eat at a chillidog stand, which in some ways, was similar to him proposing to them. And it wasn't the only step in their relationship. Their patrol a few nights ago had ended with Steph taking a selfie, the Red Hood's right hand in a peace symbol whilst his left hand held up a beaten thug by his collar. In the background, Black Bat was in the air her foot out about to kick the man in front of her.

All of them had a social media accounts. At least a Vine account and Instagram and some had a Twitter and Tumblr account. Dick had started it when he had been Robin and had quickly gotten over two million followers in a few months. By the end, it was one of the more popular accounts on the media. He had handed it to Jason when he had stopped being Robin and had taken up the mantle of Nightwing. Jason hadn't been the best at the account, his photos blurry and not as interesting as Dick's had been and soon he had been losing followers. He had panicked, feeling like he had let down Dick. It had been Alfred who had suggested he create another one. Jason had taken his advice and made one about books and quotes and that one became more popular. The joy he had felt when Nightwing had followed him had been similar to swinging off a two hundred floor building. The Robin Instagram stopped being maintained when he had died, though. After a while, Timothy had begun adding photos when he became the next Boy Wonder, making the rumours of the Robin being dead die down. Jason knew he had another one as Red Robin. Tim was one of the worst owners, spending months without adding a photo and then uploading tens of videos and photos in one night. The Robin Instagram account had been passed onto Damian who posted more photos of Titus and Alfred the Cat than he did of himself of Robin. Barbara had had a Batgirl account too but when the Joker had paralysed her, she had decided to kill the account as she was no longer really Batgirl. Even though she had put on the description that she had abandoned it, people still followed her. Steph had one as Spoiler and as Batgirl, creating a new one in respect to Barbara's Instagram. She constantly posted and hers was one of the better-maintained ones. She had set up one for Cass but Cass hadn't posted many photos yet, still not getting her head around the whole concept.

"Watcha thinkin' of?" Steph drawled, leaning her head back on his shoulder to look at him. He shook his head.

"Nothin' important." Steph nodded and shifted, toeing her boots off.

"Don't suppose you have somethin' more comfy?" She asked hopefully. Jason sighed and rolled his eyes, getting up from his seat, which made Steph drop back onto the sofa in a squeaking heap.

"Follow me," he told her, Cass standing and bringing up the rear. He led them to his room and pulled out his drawer for tops and picked out two. Jason rummaged around but couldn't find any sweat pants that were anywhere near their sizes.

"Here, the tops should go down ter yer knees but these are the smallest sweatpants I could find. Sorry." He handed them the articles of clothing. They took the articles of clothing and thanked him. Jason walked out of the room to let them change. He ambled to his sofa and laid along the length of it, his feet propped up on the armrest. The girls walked out a few seconds later, stupid grins on their faces as they shuffled into the room, trying not to trip on the excess material bunched around their feet.

"Cass took the smaller sweatpants and top. You weren't kiddin', this top comes down to me knees," Steph said, sitting on top of his shins in retaliation for him taking up the entire couch. Cass perched on her chair perpendicular to the sofa, looking content as Steph brought her feet up to rest on the edge of the sofa and began to roll the bottoms up. The hero gave up and instead pushed the sweatpants down her legs and onto the floor.

"You better have somethin' under tha' shirt," Jason grumbled.

"Don't worry, I have cycling shorts on," Steph told him, raising a side of the top to show him it.

"Thank God," Jason shuddered. "I'd hate to wear somethin' that's touched your bare legs." He threw his head back, raising his right arm to rest it on his forehead for dramatic effect. Steph laughed and threw a pillow at him.

"Are... we gunna... watch sumin'?" Cass asked. Jason sat up, using Steph's weight to keep his legs down.

"'Going to' and 'something'," Jason enunciated. Cass tilted her head in confusion. "Can't have you talkin' improper and like an uneducated street rat. Alfred would 'ave me head for doing that to you. Yer a Wayne, ya gotta speak all posh and proper."

"But Steph... speaks differ..ently when she... with you. Speaks less po... prop-er..." Cass told them.

"Is with Jason," Steph corrected. Cass flushed slightly but nodded, looking as if she had filed it away. "I guess I speak more like a Crime Alleyer when I'm relaxed. Jason's also got the same accent so I guess it comes out more when I'm with him," Steph paused then sniggered. "Name of Jason's sex tape." Jason threw the cushion she had thrown at him back at her. Steph squeaked and dodged it, the bottom of it hitting the top of her head.

"What is.... a sex taayp?" Cass asked.

"Alright, we're ending this conversation," Jason said.

"But?" Cass started.

"If yer really wanna know, ask Bruce. He'll just _lurve_ that," Jason's smile broadened as he envisioned Bruce choking on his spit as innocent Cass asked him what it was. It fell when he thought of something. "But don't tell him we were the ones who introduced you to it." Jason ended any of her protests by turning the TV on. He selected another episode of Supernatural and pressed play. "Help yerself ter food. You two know where everythin' is by now." Steph stood up from where she had been sitting on his legs and walked to grab some snacks.

"You made any new treats?" She asked as she nosed around his fridge.

"Yeah," he answered pausing the episode so she wouldn't miss anything. "Been holed up in here 'til Bruce calms down. Gotta do sumin',"

"Oooohhh you made flapjacks... and brownies!" Steph exclaimed, stacking them and some choc' chip cookies as well onto a plate. She went to the glass cupboard and got three big cups and poured milk into them then walked back into the room with them. "I come bearing food," she bowed and placed the food on the table. Cass went for the cookies having mastered the art of dunking cookies into milk that Steph had taught her a few weeks ago, in the exact same room.

"Food that I made," Jason corrected absently as he hit play. Steph sat on his knees and glared at him, Jason's legs reflexively kicking up at the sudden weight. Steph beamed down at him and he glared at her. She shifted slightly and laid down onto his chest as she watched Cass sit sideways in her chair, her legs hooked over the left arm rest whilst the other one supported her back, and dunk her cookies into the milk.

"Aww, they grow up so fast," she said, a hand over her chest as the other one wiped an imaginary tear away. Jason pinched the inside of her arm to shut her up. She took the hint and fell silent, watching the two hot brothers on screen. Jason's large left hand laid on her back, rubbing every so often whilst his right one hung over the sofa, feeding himself or Steph some food every so often.

* * *

In the end, they watched three episodes. After the last one had ended, Jason looked down to see Steph sleeping on his chest.

"Out like a baby. Thought she would 'ave lasted longer seeing as she spends most of her nights patrolling," Jason commented, hand ruffling her hair as he looked over to Cass who was in the middle of a massive yawn. "Okay, guess it's time fer bed after all." His arms wrapped around Steph to steady her as he lifted his top half off the sofa. He nudged her slightly and she fell backwards into his arms, turning so he could carry her bridal style. Once he had a secure hold on her, he stood up, not even grunting at the added weight. Cass set her glass of milk onto the table and followed him as she yawned again, closing her eyes and relying on her memory of his apartment and following his footsteps so she wouldn't bump into anything. She opened up the door to his spare room and Jason walked in, going to the bed. Cass headed in that direction too, folding back the duvet so he could lay Steph down under it without hassle. Jason pulled it back up and tucked it under the sleeping blonde's chin. He ruffled her hair fondly as he smiled down at her.

"You sleepin' with her?" He asked. Cass shook her head. "Ah, 'cos you'll wake up in a koala hold." Cass nodded, grimacing as she remembered waking up several times after sleeping with the girl only to find Steph's arms and legs wrapped around her in a tight hold. She wasn't even sure how Steph could do it without alerting Cass that she was moving. Jason opened up a fold up bed and walked outside to where he kept all his sheets in the linen cupboard in the corridor, coming back with several piles of material. He dumped them on the foot of the portable bed and set about putting the sheet over the mattress. He easily pulled the pillow cases over the pillows and managed to get the duvet in the duvet cover, using the inside out trick that Alfred had taught him.

"Alright, here it is. I've given you two pillows but if you need more than there are two more on the pile of blankets. If you get cold I've left three blankets at the bottom of the bed," he told her, stepping back to survey his work. Absently his foot reached out to flip the corner of the duvet down.

"Do you need anything else? Hot milk? Hot chocolate?" Cass smiled and shook her head.

"Soccer... mom," she told him. He grabbed a spare pillow and whacked her on the shoulder with it. She faked pain, clutching her shoulder and sank to the floor. Jason laughed at her and put the pillow back.

"Alright I'll be in my own room if yer do need me," he told her and walked out. He closed the door almost fully shut behind him, letting them get out of the room easily and quietly in case of an emergency, and strolled into the living room to clean up the mess. It wasn't much, a plate and three cups. He brushed the few crumbs he could find into his hand and put them in the bin. Jason walked around the inside of his apartment, checking the locks on the doors and windows. Finally, the male put the security fully on and went to bed.

* * *

He woke up, for once without a start from a nightmare. He yawned and stretched, closing his eyes after looking at the time. He had woken naturally, something that rarely happened, and, whilst he liked being up early, he allowed himself to have a little lay in. His bright green eyes opened again when he heard the distinctive sound of crashing pots. The tall male tossed back the duvet and got out of bed, grabbing the gun and knife from under his pillow. Jason had a small dagger on his hip and another one strapped to his ankle so he should be more than able to take down whoever was in his apartment. As he walked into the corridor he glanced at the girls' room. The almost closed door, mirroring how he had shut it the night before, had him taking the safety off his gun as he skulked silently to the kitchen. He wasn't going to let them hurt the girls. He stood by the door frame and counted silently to five, listening to the beings inside his kitchen. The banging of pots stopped him from hearing what they were saying, if they were even talking.

"Freeze!" He commanded them, spinning into the kitchen, his gun pointed into the room. Steph and Cass froze and looked at him.

"Errrmmm..... hi?" Steph asked. The pan in her hand suddenly burst into flames. She screamed at it and Cass grabbed a tea towel and began to fan the flames, making it worse than better. Jason sighed, rolling his eyes and tossing his weapons onto the table. He turned to the door frame where there was a fire extinguisher and took it, pulling the pin and sprayed foam into the pan. Once the fire was out, he put the red can down and took the pan from Steph, placing it under the tap and pouring cold water onto it.

"Hey! That was breakfast!" Steph complained and Cass nodded. Jason turned to them, holding the pan in his right hand as he looked at them. He moved and grabbed the black spatula and began scraping the white stuff off the bottom of the pan.

"It looks more like burnt, stuck... what the hell is this?!" He asked as he put more force into getting it off. He managed to get some of the white stuff off, it stretching as he took it away from the pan.

"It... was ... was... was...." Cass turned to Steph for the word.

"It was a fried egg."

"This is many things but it is not a fried egg." He gave up and put it in the sink. "Why were you making fried eggs in the first place?"

"We... wanted to may- make... something for you," Cass told him.

"Yeah, we feel bad that we take all of yer food and we don't give anythin' back, well except for our amazing company," Steph told him, smiling and flicking her hair back. Cass smiled and nodded as well, agreeing with Steph. Jason wasn't sure if she was agreeing with the start or finish.

"Yeah, well, hate to break it ter yer but yer company sucks." Steph pouted at that. Jason moved to the third fridge and pulled out six eggs. He gestured for Cass to take them from him. She cradled them in her arm careful not to let any of them fall. Jason grabbed the milk and shut the door with his foot as he gave Steph the milk. He then crouched in front of the cupboard next to the oven and grabbed three glass bowls. He stacked them on top of each other and walked to the cutlery drawer and took three forks out. He moved back to the kitchen table and kicked the chairs away so he could stand in front of the table without anything in between. Jason put the three bowls down in a line with a fork in one of them and turned to the girls.

"Alright, come on."

"Why?" Steph asked as she stood to his left and Cass to his right.

"I'm gunna teach you two how ter make a scrambled egg," he explained. Cass' smiled, the thought of her creating something instead of destroying it, like she had been trained, made her beam. Steph grinned, knowing she could use this for college or to make her mum a breakfast in bed. Jason began to instruct them on how to crack an egg. Cass managed to destroy the first three he gave her, putting too much force into it, and he went through four more before she got the technique correct, him having to stand behind her, holding her hands and moving them himself to show her the correct way. Steph, surprisingly, managed to crack both eggs almost perfectly both times, with very little egg shells. This made Cass jealous and she casually flicked a few egg shells into her bowl. Steph in return threw an egg at her, hitting her below her chest and cracking.

"Ladies, ladies!!" Jason pushed them away. "No throwing of eggs or flour," he looked pointedly at Steph who looked at him in surprise and squeaked a "What?!" and put her hands up. "-chopping knives-" he looked at Cass who smiled sweetly at him. "-or any other food or sharp things."

It took three hours before they managed to both cook a good scrambled egg. The first few attempts at cooking at them had led to them burning. Steph's had gone as far as to explode. All three had of them dived onto the floor, training kicking in and their hands cupping the backs of their heads. Cass couldn't stop laughing when a bit of the egg dropped from the ceiling and onto Steph's head. Once they had made a safe to eat scrambled egg, they gave both of theirs to Jason. He had smiled, a small blush colouring his cheeks, and had dug in, hours after he had woken up. Steph's was slightly undercooked and Cass' was a tad too salty but he had complimented both of them, giving them a few pointers on what to do better next time. They had thanked him and ate a bit of each others' Steph's face scrunching up at the salt attacking her taste buds and Cass struggling to swallow her mouthful.

"Alright, 'bout time you both got home. Bruce's probably thinkin' I've killed yer by now," he told them grinning and putting the plates in the sink. They stood up as well, ready to help him but he just pushed the out of the room.

"But we should clean up after ourselves!" Steph protested.

"Good chefs .... cleen their messes.... the last.... par-t of cuking," Cass told him, leaning back against the arm behind her but not able to stop Jason pushing them out.

"Yeah, we've made a right mess. More hands make light work and all that," Steph struggled as well.

"If I let you clean up, you'll just make a bigger mess!" Jason said as he moved them to into the living room. They sighed and walked into the room they had slept in and changed into their uniforms. They walked out a few minutes later, Steph jumping along the floor as she put her left foot in her boot. He could see they had stripped the beds of the sheets, making his life just a little easier. Jason watched them as they crawled around the living room trying to find the last few bits of their costume, his hands in his pockets and leaning against the wall in a relaxed manner. As usual, Cass was the first to be ready and waiting next to the window. Jason moved to where she stood, passing Steph who was on her hands and knees and looking under the sofa for her glove.

"Be safe... J-ayson," she told him. He smiled down at her and ruffled her hair. She glared at him, slapping his hands away and fixed the mess he had made. The small female moved forwards and slowly opened her arms to hug him, giving him enough time to move away if he wanted to. Instead, to her surprise, he moved in and hugged her as well. She stood on tiptoes to wrap her arms around his broad shoulders. Cass pulled back half a minute later, Jason letting her slip away. She smiled at him and stuck a leg out of the open window. Once her foot was on the outside balcony, she brought her chest down and arced it through the gap, in a feat of great flexibility that would have impressed Dick, Jason pushing the window up to help her. Her right foot slid through and joined the rest of her body. Jason turned around to Steph.

"Put it back," he told her. Steph faked ignorance.

"What are you talking about?"

"The twen'y you put in between the sofa cushions," Steph swore and ripped the bill out. Jason smiled at her as she stomped over to him. When she was in range she threw herself at him, arms slinging around his neck in a tackle hug. Jason smiled and hugged her as well, arms wrapping around her waist as he held her weight. She bent her knees and flicked her feet up as she hung onto the tall male.

"Thanks, Jace," she told him. She gave him a quick kiss on the cheek and joined Cass on the balcony. They waved at him and he waved back, watching them swing away. He turned with a smile on his lips and walked to the kitchen to start clearing up after them.


	5. The Patrol

The TV was playing another episode of Supernatural. Cass and Steph were on the sofa, backs leaning on the armrests and their feet meeting in the middle. Jason had been booted off the sofa and was sitting in front of their feet on the floor, leaning his back against the sofa. The episode ended with the brothers defeating the monster. They got up when the credits started rolling on, stretching their bodies after sitting in the same position for a while. Jason turned off the TV and moved to look at them.

"Ready for patrol?" He asked. Steph grinned whilst Cass just nodded.

"Hell yeah! Lemme at 'em, imma punch the snot outta them." She punched the air a few times as she spoke. Cass just rolled her eyes and shook her head at Steph's enthusiasm. Her foot kicked out and hit the side of Steph's knee.

"Keep for-getting... to guard .... lower bod-ee," she tutted. Jason laughed and Steph glared at him.

"What? It's true."

"True-shmu, you're just gangin' up on tiny wittle me," she complained bending down with a huff  to unzip the duffel bag that contained her Batgirl uniform. Cass copied her and got out her costume. The girls moved away from the living room, Cass going into the spare bedroom and Steph into one of the bathrooms to get changed. Jason walked into his own room and grabbed his uniform. He picked his hoodie and cargo pants over the black full suit of armour, which he used more for actual missions instead of patroling, and put on his kevlar armour then a black t-shirt over it and finally his hoodie. He repeated the process with his bottoms and then he was ready. He walked into his weapons room and grabbed a few guns, grappling hooks, bombs and blades. He slipped out of the room before Cass or Steph knew he was in there and hid his guns.

The girls were already waiting for him in the living room.

"What took you so long? Doing your hair?" Steph teased.

"Nails actually," he snarked back. "And I couldn't decide which outfit to wear," he did a 360 and struck a model pose. "Am I workin' it?" Steph created a rectangle with her second fingers and thumbs and moved it around, keeping Jason in the gap in the middle. Cass mimed clicking a button of a camera.

"The cameras love you!" Steph said. Jason brought his hands to his chest in delight and blinked rapidly. The girls laughed at his silliness. He grabbed his helmet and slipped it on and walked to the girls who were waiting by the window. They slipped through and waited on the other side for him. Jason struggled to get through the small space the two girls fitted through, hitting his head and shoulder on the bottom of the push-up window.

"Need help?" Steph asked.

"Yeah, I'm not as small as you two." Cass moved forward and pushed the window up to the top, giving him room to clamber through and swing his leg out. Cass lowered it gently and Jason moved to make sure the security was on. He turned and nodded to them to go. Together, they fired their grapplings and swung away Jason, for once, with them.

* * *

Patrol wasn't that eventful, they stopped a few muggings and burglaries but most of the villains of Gotham were in Arkham Asylum or were keeping a low profile. They sat in the middle of a rooftop, eating chillidogs and relaxing. The peaceful, happy atmosphere was ruined when Red Robin swung in.

"Steph, we need to talk," he told her. She sighed and stood up.

"Don't call me that on patrol," she said and walked a little way off from Jason and Cass, who both watched them ready to jump in at any point.

"Look, you and Cass need to stop hanging out with that guy. He's crazy, he's going to hurt you, maybe even kill you." Tim began, eyes flicking to the Red Hood who sat behind Steph, wary of him.

"My God, how many times must I tell you this: Jason ain't gunna hurt me or Cass! If he was going to, he would have done it ages ago! We're friends. Can't you give him a chance?" She asked, beginning to get annoyed.

"Ste- Batgirl, he's mentally unstable. He can go from being your friend to killing you in a split second. And you don't have the skills or strength to defend yourself."

"I'll have you know, that Cass and Jason have been helping me spar. I've become a lot better at it now. They teach me how to finish a fight without being injured too badly or at all. They don't teach me how to not hurt a villain." _'like you lot do,_ ' she hadn't said it but they both knew what she was implying.

"He's been teaching you how to kill?!"

"What?! No! He's only taught me a few things."

"Batman doesn't want you hanging with him."

"You think I care what he wants? Maybe if he gave Jason a chance, he'll realise that Jason isn't that bad."

"He's a killer!"

"He's been killing less. Even ask Oracle, she'll tell you the same damn thing! Is it because you lot are mad that the Red Hood has managed to decrease crime, even if it isn't in the best way, whilst your efforts don't even seem to dent it?" Steph asked.

"Batgirl... I'm just worried. He's dangerous. I don't want you hurt."

"You're not my boyfriend, Tim!" Steph shouted. Tim looked shocked for a second.

"But I care for you. I... I still have feelings for you."

"If you had feelings for me, you wouldn't have broken up with me." Jason stood up and walked over to them, seeing enough. He loomed up behind Steph, placing a comforting hand on the small of her back. He placed himself so he was diagonal to her shoulder, beginning to curl around her and be more than ready to push her behind him if the need occurred. At a bare minimum, he had seven inches on the next tallest person on the roof and he used his height and bulk to intimidate the boy in front of him.

"How 'bout you leave her alone?" He growled. Tim glared back at him.

"Hood,"

"Replacement. Heard you got replaced too. Must feel awful." Tim's glare deepened at his monotonous voice.

"What are you doing here?" He asked. Jason looked around.

"Eating on a rooftop with my friends. Things, I must add, that you don't have. It's not like you own this building anyway." Tim folded his arms.

"You know what I meant."

"Okay, okay, I'll tell you. This is the fifteenth meeting of the 'People who were killed or almost killed because they decided they would help Bruce on his stupid crusade against crime,'" Tim's eyes widened as Jason used Bruce's name. Cass came to stand by Steph's other side, her silence putting Tim off her.

"This isn't over," he glared at Jason and walked off.

"Ohh I'm scared. Look at me I'm quaking in my boots," Jason laughed and dropped the sarcasm. "Yeah, run back to Brucie. Maybe he's learnt from us and can finally get to you in time. Oh and, tell Barbara she's welcome to join our lil' club. She can be an honourary member, she can take the title of 'member who wasn't killed but badly hurt with life changing consequences'," he titled his head as he pondered. "Or maybe we'll split off from this group and begin our own group. How does 'people who were maimed or killed by the Joker' sound? Or maybe 'Our murder slash attacker is still walking free even after what he's done to us'?" Tim threw a venomous glare over his shoulder and swung away.

"You okay?" Jason asked, looking at Steph. She looked a little ruffled up. Steph sighed and nodded. Jason brought her into his side, an arm slung around her shoulders. She pressed into him, hiding her face in his side as she wrapped her arms around him and returned the hug. Cass pressed herself into Steph's back and gave her a hug too.

"He's such a.. a.. ARGH!!" Steph complained.

"Ass, asshole, jerk, punk ass little bitch?" Jason supplied.

"All of them times a billion," Steph spoke, voice muffled. She pulled back and let go of him. Cass squeezed her once more then moved back.

"Want to... go patrol?" Cass asked. Steph nodded.

"God, yes." She ran to the building edge and hurled herself off it. Steph let herself freefall for a few heartbeats then fired her grappling and curled away. Jason and Cass followed her, letting her lead them. They ran over the buildings tops, swinging the gaps too big for them to jump until they came to a building with smashed windows in. They landed in front of the doors and looked in, seeing Penguin. They all moved as one, jumping into the building and began fighting.

"Penguin. Didn't know you were out of prison," Jason greeted, pulling his guns out and firing at Penguin's bodyguards. Cass shoved his arm.

"No... killing," she told him. He rolled his eyes but complied, aiming for the legs of the rest of the people. Penguin squawked as he saw the Red Hood. Jason couldn't blame him, Red Hood was a crime lord that had not only taken the Black Mask's territory and then almost killed him, Batman stepping in before he could, he had also carved out huge chunks of Penguin's part of Gotham. At 21, he was the youngest crime lord Gotham ever had and had gained more land in less time than anyone else.

"H-H-Hood," Penguin stammered, breaking into a nervous sweat as he saw the hulking man. He, as did everyone else, knew about the Red Hood's methods in dealing with criminals.

"Sorry for dropping in uninvited but I wasn't really sure how to give you a message. I was thinkin' about sendin' back the body of one of yer guards with a time and place carved into his skin but that would probably scare yer off," Jason smirked as Penguin paled. The Red Hood made his way forward, taking on anyone that tried to stop him. By that time, Cass had slipped off. He saw her occadionally out of the corners of his eyes, a flash of black. He wasn't too worried about her, knowing she could take down Bruce so these men wouldn't be a problem for her. He kept his eyes on Steph, using the mirror behind Penguin to watch her progress whilst he still fought. She was doing pretty well, defending herself from the men. They had put her on the defence but she was doing everything both of them had taught her, protecting her vital organs and head. He watched her, waiting for the dynamics to switch.

Steph grabbed the arm of one of the goons as he tried to punch her. She spun into him and elbowed his open ribs hard enough for them to crack. The female then turned so her front was facing him again and brought up her palm, hitting the bottom of his face and knocking him out. As he fell to the ground, she threw batarangs at the men holding guns and lunged at the rest of the men facing her, delivering kicks and punches and working her way through the rest of them. And if one of them got too close to her? Well, Jason would blame the adrenaline coursing through him that made his arms shake and ruined his aim, making him hit them in more vital areas.

He turned back to the Penguin and began to advance towards him. The small man made a high pitched noise and yelled at his men to go to him. Jason holstered one of his guns, not the best for close combat, and unsheathed his blade. He ducked the punch from the first man, driving the blade up into his ribs. The man's breath left him as Jason yanked the blade out. He kicked the man off of him and threw the blade at the next guy. The blade spun in the air and landed in his eye. The bald male dropped down dead and Jason fired his gun at the next two men, hitting them in the kneecaps. When the last one fell he marched forwards, reaching down to pull the blade in the man's eye out. He strolled up to Penguin, one hand in his pocket and the other one holding the bloodied knife as a warning. He kept his gait slow and casual, as if he hadn't just taken down all four of the guards who had probably been in the army at one point. He smiled as Penguin looked even more fearful. It was something he had, begrudgingly, picked up from Batman. He had changed Bruce's silent stalk slightly, making it less gliding and more blasé, relaxed as if he could take anyone down that dared to attack him, which was true.

"I-I-I'll pay y-you. Anyth-thing. Just don't k-k-kill me please!" Penguin begged. Jason's lips curled up in a sneer. He hated scum who begged for their lives.

"What's black and white and red all over?" He asked. Penguin looked confused.

"W-what?"

"You heard me, what's black and white and red all over?"

"I... I don't know," Penguin began to sweat more, wondering if the answer would save him from being killed. It was a psychological torture even if Jason hadn't meant for it to be.

"'Cos I'm nice and all, unlike the Riddler, I'll you a clue. It's not a sunburnt zebra or a newspaper." Penguin whimpered and turned around, about to run away from the Red Hood. Before he could lift a foot to run though, Cass appeared, running and jumping. Both of her feet landed on his face and she straightened her bent legs, kicking him with enough force that blood gushed out of his nose as he flew down the stairs to Jason's feet. Batgirl, who had finished taking down her thugs, jumped up and down her arm raised in the air.

"Ohh oh! I know, I know! A beaten penguin!" Steph told them. Jason knelt down to Penguin and placed his palm over his broken nose.

"Tell me what you were doin' here or I'll push the cartilage of yer nose into yer brain and kill you," he threatened.

"Y-you wouldn't dare!" Penguin cried out pitifully, seeing Batgirl. "Y-you're a Bat and everyone knows they don't kill." Jason smirked and placed his gun on Penguin's forehead. Neither Batgirl nor Black Bat moved.

"You really think he's gonna let a crime lord be 'part of his gang? I flew away from that nest a long time ago. I ain't Batman. I ain't even a Bat. I kill. You should know that by now, I've been a massive pain in yer ass for a while now. Killing you would do this damn city a helluva good thing." Penguin whimpered.

"Th-there are ... w-weapons. I was g-g-going to use th-them to ki-kill y... to take back s-some of my s-stolen l-land."

"Ohh, so you were gunna take my land?" He asked, pushing the gun into his forehead a little harder.

"NO! NO!! N-not you... O-others who w-were taking my land." Red Hood dug the gun into his forehead then pushed off and stood up. Penguin whimpered again at the freedom and Jason brought his foot down on his head, knocking him out.

"Better zip-tie them and notify the police," Jason told them. The girls nodded and got to work, Cass going to notify the police and Batman via text whilst Steph went to work on zip-tying the knocked out goons. After her fight with Tim, she suspected they didn't want to hear from her. Red Hood surveyed the room, looking for any more threats or hidden men but couldn't find any. He put his gun and blade away and went to help Steph with the handcuffing.

"Yer did well," he told her as they worked side by side. Steph paused and looked at him.

"Really? 'Cos it seemed like I got my butt handed to me," she admitted. He could see her lip was split, blood leaking down her chin. Her cheekbone was already swelling and there was a bruise already blossoming under her cowl, the purple reaching up past her cowl.

"Yer the one that's standing. At the end of the day, I'll call that a win, kid," he told her. She smiled and looked back down at cuffing the man's hands behind him. The fact that she seemed so happy to hear the praise made him hate Bruce even more. Did he really not praise them? Cass walked over to them after notifying the police and Oracle. She helped them tie up the last few and they made their way out of the building. They grappled up to the opposite building's roof and waited until the police came. Once the goons were loaded into the back of a police van, they left the scene silently together.


	6. The Decision

The window opening made him listen to the quiet flutter of a cape. He turned over to the window when he didn't hear the thud of feet on the wooden floor that signalled that Steph had entered. Cass pushed the window down and walked to him. Steph wasn't with her and he raised his eyebrow at that. This was the first time she had come on her own and he couldn't help but smile at the trust she must have for him. Cass waved at him as she walked to where he was laying on the sofa, back propped up by the armrest. She crawled onto the sofa and moved up to where he was sitting and placed herself on his chest, legs in between his. She worked her shoes off with her feet and let them fall onto the floor as she nuzzled into Jason's chest, minding his scars without being told. He wrapped his arms around her shoulders and rested his chin on her head. Both of the girls were affectionate but for different reasons. Steph was a happy, bubbly person who liked human touch. Cass hadn't been allowed to touch people or be touched in any way other than for pain when she had lived with her father. Now that she was allowed to touch people and be touched with love, she was always trying to hug people. Touch made it easier for her to convey what she was thinking or feeling.

"Bad patrol?" He asked. Cass nodded sullenly. His hands moved up and down her back, giving her some comfort. He didn't need to ask to know that the person or people she had been protecting had gotten injured. They sat like that, Cass' face in his black shirt for a while. He pressed a few buttons on the tablet and took off screen-mirroring, his TV going black. He turned off his tablet, giving himself a break from learning the blueprints of the building he had been studying.

"There's somethin' I wanna show yer," he told her. She looked up from his shirt, her brown eyes wide and he felt sorry for all she had gone through. The anger he always felt was kicked up a notch as he thought of what her own father had done to her. With a little effort, he pushed the anger down and wiggled to the side of the sofa to grab the TV remote on the table. His arm tightened around Cass so she wouldn't fall off as he moved around. Once the remote was in his hand, he moved away from the side of the sofa. Jason brought up the menu and began searching through it. Once he had found what he wanted he clicked it. The film that began play was in black and white. A man, small and with a black moustache, ran on screen, being chased by a donkey. He ran into a cage and almost into a sleeping lion. Cass watched the film with intrigue, laughing at the funny parts. It was a silent film so it meant that she could understand all of it. Once it had finished, Jason played the next one, this time with a different actor.

"We found an old TV in a tip once and took it, me mom and me. It was shitty and massive with a small screen and the quality was abysmal but me mom saved up an' got a second hand tape VCR player. She went clean fer five months to get me that. I saved up as much as possible, doin' jobs here and there an' sellin' things we din't need or the things I stole. Thought I had enough to buy a VCR but I din't have half the money needed. Wen' round every charity and second han' shop within walking distance of our home. 'Ventually I found a set of Buster Keaton and Charlie Chaplin VCRs and bought 'em. Me mom and I would watch 'em, 'specially when she was down. Whenever Dad came back all angry I'd watch 'em. They made us laugh." Jason told her, a far away look in his eyes. His hand stilled as his eyes teared up slightly, remembering his late mother. Cass snaked her arms around him in a hug and listened to him talk about the mother he had never talked about. "We got Laurel and Hardy as well. I preferred Hardy but mom preferred Laurel. Her father was from Scotland and so his accent was slightly similar to the one she had grown up with. Her favourite silent actor though was Charlie Chaplin. She loved The Lion's Cage. Me, I prefered Buster Keaton. The one where he was hanging from a clock was my favourite. We'd watched as much as possible, they made the shitty life we lived in bearable." Jason fell silent.

"Thank you," Cass whispered, her insides warming as she realised that Jason trusted her enough to tell her about a big part of his life. Jason, who didn't really trust anyone after what had happened to him, was telling her some of the most intimate and private parts of his life. She felt the need to share something else but couldn't think of anything in her life that she could talk about. "How... long ....... did you.... spent on .... finding these?"

"Spend," Jason corrected her, hand resuming rubbing her back. He hummed as he thought about it. "Three and a half hours? Maybe four." Which probably meant he spent at least five. The number surprised Cass, her brown eyes widening.

"That..'s too... long. Should not... have did-no done-... that," she told him. Jason shrugged a shoulder and smiled down at her.

"I wasn't sleepy so I thought I would do something productive," which meant the nightmares had driven him to stay up so he wouldn't have to go back to sleep and relive his death again. "Anythin' ta help someone I care for."

"Should do ... sum- somethin' for ... yew. Make.... a cay-ck?" She told him, a small smile tugging at her lips as she decided what she was going to do for him. It lowered when she thought of something. "Cannot... make cay-ck though," her face morphed into a puzzled expression as she thought of something she could do to repay him.

"It's fine, really Cass. You don't have to bake me a cake. Yer company and the fact yer enjoyin' it is enough for me." Cass didn't look convinced but dropped it for his sake. He pressed a button on the remote and began to play another clip. She focused even more on it, ingraining all of it into her memory, imagining what it would have been like for Jason and his mother. From what she had learnt from him, it wouldn't have been very pleasant. Her fingers trailed down his chest, noting that his muscle mass had decreased. She snuck a peek up at him, seeing the bags under his eyes and his more pronounced cheekbones. The nightmares must have been keeping him up all night and scaring him from trying to sleep. The Red Hood hadn't been spotted in a while, Jason not joining their patrol for over two weeks. When she had finally persuaded Oracle to find him, he was halfway around the world in Scotland. She wondered what had driven him so far away, Oracle said it was probably a mission but Cass didn't think so. Maybe it was family that had sent him so far away. Or the memory of his dead family.

Jason's breathing began to even out and she looked to find him with his eyes closed. She skillfully worked the pillow at her feet up her body, using her legs to throw it onto her back. She reached back and took it off her and wiggled it under his body so he was slightly more comfortable. She then moved him down the sofa so his head was rested on something so he wouldn't wake him with neck pains. Cass settled for waking him up after several hours of rest and pressed play for the next movie. 

* * *

" _Which one hurts more? A? Or B? Forehand or backhand?" Joker swung the iron bar onto his body. Jason screamed as another bone broke. His throat was on fire from all the screaming he had done, vocal chords sore and thrumming in time to the pain of his whole body. Jason swallowed, desperate to alleviate the pain. The coppery tang of blood made him wince. "Are you even paying attention?" Joker asked and slammed the iron crowbar down with all his weight onto Jason's unprotected head. His vision swam and burst into colours as the room swayed around him. He was out of it for a few seconds but the pain came back with even greater force. The blow was enough to pull him out of his meditative trance he had been in to deal with the pain. The beating continued for hours if not days. Suddenly the world swirled and he found himself holding the door handle. A ticking noise made him move his head and he saw the red numbers ticking down. The warehouse was empty and he briefly wondered where his mum had gone but the bomb detonated instead. He screamed again as shrapnel pierced his broken body. The ceiling rained down on him, crushing an ankle and hand. He was stuck, unable to escape whilst the fire made its way towards him. It began to consume him, first his legs and then worked its way up, devouring his flesh. He wailed at the pain, wiggling and trying to dislodge the chunk of granite that was on his back, crushing his broken ribs and making it even harder to breathe with the smoke around him. A black figure appeared in front of him._

_"Batman!" He cried out, his hand that wasn't trapped reaching towards the Dark Knight. Dimly he was aware of how small his hand was, the size it was when he was a child. Batman just looked down at him as tears began to slip from his big blue eyes. "H-Help me, please!" He begged._

_"You're a disappointment, Jason. You're not worthy to call yourself Robin. It was a mistake to let you be my sidekick. You deserve to die, always going against my orders," Batman sneered down at him. A small part of him whispered this was a dream, a nightmare, but it wasn't enough and it was thrown to the back of his mind. "Dick was a thousand times better than you. Even that Tim boy is better than you. I'll make him my new Robin and he'll be better than you could ever be. No one will know you died, no one will miss you." The figure moved away and Jason began to cry even more, hand reaching out to the retreating figure. He yanked his other hand out from its granite prison and worked to shove the debris off his body, ignoring how the pain in his body burned, all the while begging and pleading for him to come back, that he'll be a better Robin, just give him one more chance. Instead of Batman coming back, Joker reappeared._

_"Do what you want with him, he's not my Robin anymore," Batman told him, handing the mad man a steel bar. Suddenly Dick and Tim as well Barbara, Steph, Cass and Damian appeared, all in their uniforms. They walked by Bruce's side, laughing and chatting as Jason pleaded to their backs to come and save him but they all ignored him._

_"Just me and you now, kid," Joker smiled crazily and brought the bar up over his head, about to swing it down onto Jason-_

Jason bolted upright, chest heaving as he woke from the nightmare. His legs fought the duvet that was trapping them, kicking it down as he groped for the light switch. His eyes searched the room as he scrambled out of bed, the weapons he had stashed under his pillows held in a shaky, tight grip. When he was positive there was no one in the room, he lowered the weapons and sighed. He was drenched in sweat and there were tear tracks down his cheeks. He wiped them away angrily and walked out of the room, the door banging shut. Jason made his way through his safe house, checking the rooms. Once he was sure no one was in his house, he scrambled back into his bedroom and walked into the bathroom. The male forcefully twisted the knob until the water was coming out of the faucet. He moved back and grabbed a towel and a fresh pair of boxers then stripped and walked into the shower. The freezing water made him cry out but it was what he needed. The cold water made him more awake, washing away his fatigue. Jason ignored the way his scars tingled and ached from the cold water, he just gritted his teeth and washed the sweat away. 

Once he was clean and decent smelling again, he shut the water off and clambered out of the showers. The tall male dried himself with the towel, carefully patting the larger scars on his body. He put on his pants and walked out of the room. As he did so, his eyes caught his reflection in the mirror. He turned and looked at his reflection, eyes drawn to the white scars that crisscrossed his body. The most noticeable one was the 'Y' that was on his chest, starting in the middle of his shoulders and ending where his boxers covered the line. He traced it with a finger, the raised flesh a light pink instead of white like most of his other scars. It was beginning to fade to a more whitish colour but Jason knew it would never fade away like some of his other scars. He traced a few of the other scars Joker had given him. The Lazarus Pit had been too busy saving his brain, especially after all the trauma it had gone through, that it had only faded some of his lesser scars. On his legs, he still had the burn scars from when the fire had reached him before Bruce could pull him out of the wreckage. His fist was on the mirror before he knew he had made a fist. It broke, Jason seeing several more of him in the cracked mirror. Blood dripped down from his split knuckles, a red line slowly making its way down the mirror. He sighed and took his hand away, shards falling down. The traumatised boy brushed the shards out of his knuckles and washed the blood away. He had punched so many mirrors that it was beginning to make a dent in his bank account.

He stalked out and headed to his wardrobe that had his suit in. He ripped his black body suit out and began to tug it on his body. When it was on, he moved to the boots and pulled them harshly on. Once he was suited and booted he walked to his weapons room and began grabbing weapons and putting them on his body. He finally deemed himself ready for patrol he walked out and headed into the living room. It wasn't even seven yet and the sun was still in the sky, slowly lowering but the urge to punch his feelings out didn't deter him. He walked into the room the same time the girls dropped in, for once in their civilian outfits. Steph looked at him in his Red Hood outfit.

"Oh, you're going on patrol? Kinda early innit?" She turned back to the window and reached out her arms. Cass gave her bag and Steph pulled it through, repeating the process with another three bags. Cass crawled through the gap and saw him in his uniform.

"Oh," she said, seeming to visibly deflate. "We... were hoping... you could help... us."

"Explain. Now," he told them, raising an eyebrow. The nightmare had woken some of the more dormant Lazarus Pit's effects and they were becoming increasingly more active in him as every second ticked by. Paired with him being on edge from the nightmare, it wasn't a good cocktail and had resulted in him snapping at the poor girls without meaning to.

"Well it's just that Bruce is havin' a ball in a few days time and Cass is invited 'cos she's his daughter and she invited me along and we wanted a third opinion on our dresses," Steph told him. She looked a little sad. "But if you've got plans then I guess... we'll reschedule?"

"Is... our fault. Should have told you.... our plans," Cass agreed, also looking sad. She noticed the way his arms shook and how his chest rose slightly faster than normal when he breathed. His pupils were wider than usual as well as he flitted them around the room, as if there was an enemy hidden. They were all an indicator of fear. Jason sighed, hand coming so his thumb could rub one eye and his second and third fingers could rub the other. He pinched the bridge of his nose as he thought. He could either go on patrol and take his anger and frustrations out alone or he could spend time with people who made him happy.

"Nah, it's fine. Gotham can survive without the big bad Red Hood patrolling her streets for a night. Batman and the others can take care of themselves." The girls beamed at his decision, running over to him to hug him. He laughed as they repeatedly thanked him, his arms crossing over both of their backs and holding them up as the kicked their feet in glee like little girls.

"What are you gonna wear to the ball?" Steph asked teasingly.

"I wasn't invited," Jason told her truthfully.

"WHAT?!" Even Cass looked shocked. Jason just shrugged.

"Well, legally I'm dead. If I turn up it may raise some questions."

"But you died years ago. You've aged and look different now, no one will recognise or link you to the cute little boy they remember," Steph argued.

"Yeah well, guess being invited to Prince Charming's ball is a privilege given to those who ain't angry or violent or killers like me. Or all three."

"Not.. fair. Bad Broose," Cass huffed.

"Yeah, you tell him. Not even inviting his own son to the party. Talk about pushing him away. Stupid Dickhead."

"It's fine, really," Jason began, not used to people sticking up for him. "Those things were a pain and so boring. I'm happy not going to those shitty things."

"You sure?" Steph asked, not looking convinced.

"Yeah, yeah. Now lemme just slip into something more comfortable and you can show me the dresses," he told them. He strode to his room and began the struggle of getting off his armour. Most of it fell on the floor. Though he hated clothes on the floor, and messy rooms in general, he was too tired to put it all back. He kicked it into a small pile in front the wardrobe it was normally kept in and walked over to where he kept his casual clothes. He pulled on a white top that had black three-quarter length sleeves and the Wonder Woman logo in the middle and picked a black pair of sweatpants with a Japanese word in white printed down the left leg. He strolled back into the living room, heading to the kitchen to grab a beer from the fridge and sat down in the middle of the sofa.

"Alright, ladies, model those dresses." The girls walked out into the spare room taking the bags he guessed had dresses in with them. He flicked on the TV and waited patiently for them to come back out as he sipped his beer from the bottle and watched a comedy.

  
Several dresses later and they still hadn't decided which one to wear. Jason liked the ones they didn't like and the ones they kind of liked were either in the wrong colour or style. Jason groaned as the girls came back into the room with another dress on. He was beginning to think he should have gone on patrol. The girls stood in front of him and posed for him.

"Okay, I don't think I can do this much longer," his feet dropped from where they had rested on the table to the floor and he moved forward to rest his arms on his knees. "Cass," he started on her, looking at her as he spoke. "You're of Asian descent. I'd suggest wearing bolder or darker colours, reds, greens, blues, purples, those sort of colours with your complexion. Don't go for light or pastels. For your figure, the best types of dresses would be ones that were tight at the top and waist but have a loose, flowing skirt. An A-Line dress with a skirt that comes to your knees would be a good one. A column or sheath would also look nice on you but they're tight and don't give you much freedom to move, and with your background, you probably wouldn't like it. It's your first ball event and whilst an A-Line or other loose short dress would you give you mobility, you'll also be wearing heels. They don't look very comfy. For your comfort, I'd suggest you wear either plain ol' sneakers or flats. Wear a mermaid, princess or a long empire dress that have skirts that fall to the ground and splays out, or even an A-Line that has a long skirt and it should cover your shoes. A sweep would be nice, it's elegant. You should be able to rip the bottom off if worse comes to worse. As for straps, I'd go for ones that are small to show off your arms or have cap or butterfly sleeves." Cass nodded and Jason turned to Steph. "Again, mermaid or princess dresses work on you. You have long legs though, so you should show them off. A short empire, sheath, bodycon or bell dress would suit you. If you're gonna wear a long skirt, try and find one with a slit in it. As for colour, pastels would look good as would poppy yellow or blues like cobalt. For straps, you have nice shoulders so either strapless or one shoulder would be good. I'd advise for the one shoulder one in case you do have to fight."

"Okay, how do you know so much about dresses? And what's the difference between a bodycon and a sheath?" Steph asked.

"A sheath skims the body but doesn't cling to it. A bodycon is tighter and more fitted," Jason told her. "My mom used to be a dressmaker. She'd make the designs and dresses at home mostly and sometimes I'd go to her studio to watch her make them," Jason shrugged. "Guess I just picked up the knowledge." The girls blinked at him, not knowing his mother's profession before.

"I bet she made beautiful dresses," Steph said. Jason shrugged again.

"Yeah well, she was drugged up most of the time. By the end, her hands were shakin' so bad that eventually she couldn't make 'em anymore." The girls 'oh'ed then excused themselves, walking back to the room to get changed into their civilian outfits. They walked back to him and sat down on either side, his arms settling around their shoulders and bringing them closer to his sides.

"What would we... do without you?" Cass murmured.

"Die of embarrassment at your first public event probably," Jason teased. His fingers began to play with Steph's long blonde hair, carding through her strands as they watched the show on the TV. After half an hour their phones began to buzz. The noise got so bad that in the end they had to pick up.

"It's Babs, she wants us back," Steph told them.

"Go then," Jason told them.

"But-?"

"It's fine. I'm fine. Seriously, girls, you've made my night so much better and I'm really thankful for you two," Steph looked confused but Cass understood. They had helped him recover from his nightmare.

"Will you ... be patrolling?" She asked hopefully.

"I dunno, maybe," he told her truthfully. She nodded and got up.

"We'll be going. We brought loads of clothes including our uniforms," Steph told him as she patted the bag with her uniform in it. She walked off to the spare room and Cass followed her to put their uniforms on. Jason waited for them in the living room, finishing the rest of his beer and standing up to walk to the kitchen to put the bottle in the bin. A few minutes later the girls walked back in wearing their uniforms. Cass sat down on the sofa to put her boots on. As she was fastening her left boot up, Steph snuck forward and grabbed her right boot that was sitting on the floor. Steph shrieked and danced back as Cass rushed forward to get her shoe back. Steph held it high over her head and stood on tip toes, keeping the shoe out of Cass' reach. Cass stood on tip toes as well and jumped to grab her boot. They both knew she was letting Steph keep it, the Asian girl know more than enough ways to get her shoe back. As Steph continued to move back Jason walked out of the kitchen and saw the two girls making their ways towards them, Cass' boot in Steph's hand. Jason walked forward, keeping his footsteps quiet. Once he was behind Steph, the blonde making it easy as she moved closer to him, he reached up and grabbed the boot out of Steph's hand. Steph made a noise of surprise as she turned around to see him grinning lazily down at her. He rocked the shoe back and forth in front of her. Steph jumped to grab it back but Jason just brought it up out of her reach. Steph leapt at him, wrapping her arms under his armpits and legs around his thighs, holding onto him like a koala. Jason's other hand went down to grab her butt to keep her from slipping down. Steph began to make grabbing motions at the shoe. Cass crept around them and jumped onto Jason's back, beginning to climb up him. She pulled herself up to his shoulders and balanced her knees on his shoulders, thankful they were so broad her knees wouldn't slip off them, and reached up to take took the boot out of Jason's hand, both of her hands working to uncurl his fingers. Steph made another move to get the shoe and Jason jerked it out of her reach again, dropping it into Cass' waiting hand. She moved down again so her arms were wrapped around his shoulders and she was in a piggyback hold, the female tightening her hold in a thank you squeeze. She slipped down his frame, landing on her butt on the floor and her legs crossed with his legs in the gap and pulled the other shoe on.

"You people are no fuuuun," Steph complained, falling back so she was hanging almost parallel to the ground, her hands clinging to Jason's t-shirt to keep her upper body up. Jason gripped both of her hips to make sure she didn't accidentally fall.

"You need a ride to the Bell Tower?" Jason asked.

"Nah, we can get there on foot. It's not that far, just hop a few buildings and we'll be there. Thanks for the offer anyways."

Cass appeared with the bags and handed two to Steph, the other two not knowing she had left them. They said goodbye to Jason, which involved them hugging him at the same time then left through the window. Jason watched them go and turned to look at the room, leaning against the window. The glass was bulletproof so he was safe standing in plain view. He looked down at his hands and considered the pros and cons. Jason's heart was beginning to race as he thought about his decision. Deciding to hell with it, he pushed off and strode to his room, grabbing a duffel bag from underneath his bed. Hastly, he began shoving clothes into it and other essentials. The male anti-hero walked into the kitchen and went to the drawer on the right of the oven to get his passport and money. When he was packed, he booked a flight. He locked up the house and then grabbed a piece of paper and began to scribble something on it.

_'Gone away, will be back on Saturday around 6ish hopefully. Tell Cass (and yourself) to relax, I've gone away for pleasure and not business. Three days without your awful company, can't wait, it'll be total bliss!!! Lock the window when you leave, you already know the password._

_Stay safe (more for you Steph than Cass),_

_J_  
_xx'_

He placed it on the table in plain view of the window and walked out of his apartment, locking the door after him. He jogged down the stairs and went to the garage where he kept his bike. Jason put the key in the ignition and twisted, the bike roaring to life beneath his legs. The male kicked up the stand and travelled out of the small building. Once on the road, he accelerated and began the journey to the airport.


	7. The Gala

Jason walked into his apartment, dropping his duffel bag onto the sofa. He looked around his apartment, slightly out of it after the plane journey. He heard a noise outside his window and whirled around to see Cass and Steph on the balcony. Steph unlocked the window and slipped in. She ran up to him, slinging the dress protector over the sofa top as she jumped and wrapped her arms around him. Jason's forearm pinned her to his front and stopped her from falling as he hugged her back. He looked over Steph's blonde hair to see Cass standing behind unsure what to do. He opened his arm and she rushed forward, wrapping her arms around him in a hug.

"Jason! You're back!! We missed you so much!" Steph cried, clinging onto him even tighter. Jason patted her back.

"Yeah, yeah. I missed you two as well," he admitted. Cass stepped back but Steph didn't let go of him.

"Where did you... go?" She asked.

"Rattanakosin Mahinthara."

"Ratta what?" Steph asked as she let go of him and slid down his body to stand on her own two feet.

"It's an island near Thailand. There's loads of hot springs and a small group of monks that meditate almost all day."

"How did you find it?" Steph asked.

"I didn't. Ra's told me about it." That surprised the girls.

"Ra's? As in Ra's al Ghul? As in the leader of the League of Assassins? As in grandfather of Demon Brat?" Steph asked.

"Ya."

"Me no comprender," Steph said. "I didn't even know you worked with the League."

"It's kinda hard to explain. After I was revived for some unknown reason I spent around half a year on the streets after spending six months in a coma. Someone saw me who told someone who told someone who told Talia and she came to whisk me away, my knight in shining armour. I spent a year at their compound and then she threw me into the Lazarus Pit. Or did she kick me in?" Jason questioned. "Anyways, after I was revived Ra's yelled at Talia saying, and I quote, she had "let an evil into the world." He was the one who helped me with the Pit's madness, he taught me how to meditate, gave me some tips and told me a few places he had gone to relax when he had first started using the Pit."

"Woah." They both looked at him shocked.

"Yeah well... Story time's over," Jason clapped his hands. "Go put on your dresses. I'm just _dying_ to see how you look in them." They threw him unamused looks but grabbed their dresses and walked away to change. Jason leant his arms on the top of the sofa, the front his body resting on the back of the sofa, and looked down the corridor, waiting with a grin to see what they looked like.

Cass walked out first. She had taken his advice and went for a dark [navy-blue dress](https://images.rewardstyle.com/img?v=2.13&p=n_76953664) that reached the floor. It had straps that went over her shoulders but no sleeves. From her shoulders to the start of her chest there were white and blue beads creating an intricate pattern, similar to the one that ran along her waist. The dress was tight up until her waist where it then began to flow out. Cass raised the skirt so he could see her trainers, white converses. She smiled at him and he grinned back. Steph walked out and stood next to Cass. She was wearing a [light aqua blue dress](https://collectivecouture.files.wordpress.com/2015/04/prom-dresses.jpg) that reached to just before her knees. There were white beads above her chest and along her waist. The dress had one long sleeve on her left arm, the sleeve ending with the sequins as well. Silver heels completed the look.

"You both look beautiful," he complimented both of them. They blushed and laughed. "What yer gunna do with yer hair?"

"I couldn't book us a hairdresser appointment in time. One rich woman booked the entire bloody salon!" Steph complained. Jason laughed at them. "It's not funny, Jason!" Jason pushed off the sofa and unzipped the last bag they had put on the sofa. It was massive and full of makeup. He delved into the bag and grabbed the hairbrush. With a boyish grin, he moved Steph to sit on the glass table and picked up her long hair, beginning to comb it and get the tangles out. Once it was silky soft he moved to her side and began to plait the hair that fell on the left side of her head. He started in the middle, above her ear and added more hair each time as he made his way to her right shoulder. When he got to below her right ear, he carried on with a normal braid. He stood back to admire it, Cass clapping her hands at how pretty it was. He gently teased the braid apart slightly, giving it more volume and then dug into the bag and found some hairclips of sparkly flowers with four petals on. He slid them into parts of the braid along her head as well as the part of her hair that was flowing down her front.

"Don't move," he told her as he walked to his room. He went to his wardrobe and opened the two doors. With a grunt, he knelt and shoved things around at the bottom until he found the item he was looking for. He grabbed it and put it aside, reaching back to find a box. He brought it out too and grabbed the other thing and stood up, walking back to the girls. Steph had her phone in her hand and was busy looking at her hair, fawning over its prettiness. She looked up when he walked in.

"Why do you have a hair curler?" She asked.

"It was me mom's. It was one of the few things I have left of hers." He explained as he plugged it in. He waited for it to heat up. "I used to do me mom's hair. In the last few years of her life, she was too ill or drugged up to do her hair so I'd do it. Made her feel pretty, if only for a while." He grabbed the small strands of hair that framed Steph's hair that he hadn't plaited and curled them. He released the hair and stood back to view the finished product.

"Boo-tiful!" Cass remarked, smiling.

"Yeah... I am boo-tiful," Jason said. The girls giggled at him. Steph stood up and rushed to the nearest thing to look at her reflection. She went to the window to stare at her hair.

"Ohmygod Jason!! I look amazing! Thank you so much!" Jason smiled at her excitement and turned to Cass, gesturing for her to sit down. He got behind her again and brushed her short hair. He hummed as he thought of what to do with her hair. He grabbed a small section of her hair from both side and tied them together with a black elastic so she had a small ponytail above the rest of her hair. He reached over to the box he had brought from his wardrobe and flipped its lid. There were mostly photos and black film tapes but as he rifled around he found what he was looking for. It was a [clip](http://www2.avalaya.com/prodim/400x400/hair-accessories/HA00109/HA00109_4483.jpg) with four flowers on it. He popped it open and slid the bottom part of it underneath the elastic band and clipped it. Steph came walking up and made an 'aww'ing noise at Cass' hair. She took a picture of it and showed Cass. Cass smiled at the picture and turned to thank him.

"It was my mother's," he told her. Cass' eyes widened.

"I cannot... wear this." She began to take it off but Jason's hands caught her wrists.

"She would have wanted you to wear it." He smiled down at her and she lowered her hands. He stood back. "That's as good as I get. You're on yer own for yer makeup." Steph laughed.

"It's fine, I can do ours." She knelt in front of Cass and applied the makeup on her face then went to the bathroom to do her own. Jason grabbed his phone and waited until they were ready to go.

"Smile," he told them as he lifted up the phone. Cass wrapped her arm around Steph's waist and Steph placed her arm around Cass' shoulder. They both smiled at the camera. "You both look so beautiful."

"You really a soccer mom," Steph teased as she walked to the door.

"I try my hardest." He opened the door for them and bowed as they walked past. Jason grabbed the keys and walked down the concrete stairs into the alley where Steph's car was parked. Cass was at the bottom before Jason realised.

"CASS! WAIT!" He yelled. She stopped, foot hovering above the ground and looked up at him. He rushed down so he was on the floor and she was one stair up, then wrapped an arm around her back and the other behind her knees. He scooped her up and carried her bridal to the passenger seat. "Can't let your dress get dirty," he explained as he carried her to the car. "You stay there," he told Steph over the top of the car. Cass giggled and reached out to open the door. Jason ducked down and placed her on the seat, making sure the dress was all in the car before he shut the door. He looked back up to see Steph opening her door.

"I thought I told you to wait there," he told her. She rolled her eyes.

"One, my dress is shorter than Cass' and doesn't trail. Two, I grew up in the suburbs, I know to watch where I step." She hopped into the car and Jason walked around the bonnet to her side. She turned on the car and rolled down the window so he could rest his hands in the open gap.

"You better not drive with those heels, young lady," he told her. Steph rolled her eyes and jabbed the button to roll the window up, Jason pushing back so his hands wouldn't get crushed. Steph moved the car seat back and hunched over. A minute later she was sitting back up and waving her heels at him. Jason smiled and gave her a thumbs up. Steph fiddled with the gear stick and pressed down on the pedal. Cass waved at him as the car began to move forwards. He moved to stand in the middle of the alley and waved back at them. Cass turned around to wave and Steph stuck her hand up. The car pulled out and turned left at the mouth if the alley. Jason waited until he couldn't hear the car engine before he turned and ran up the stairs. He opened the door and flicked it shut with his wrist.

The tall male made his way to his bathroom, shedding his clothes as he went. Before he jumped into the shower he grabbed his most expensive body wash. It had cost him $150 and he had only used it once before. He always had been uncomfortable washing his body with expensive stuff and so he didn't use it often. He quickly washed and got out, grabbing a towel to dry. Jason walked over to his wardrobe and got out his only suit. He pulled on the black smart trousers, grabbing his most expensive leather belt and threading it through the loops. Next buttoned up the white Brioni shirt and tucked it into his suit trousers. He flipped the collar up and wrapped a tie around his neck, tying it in a Windsor knot like Alfred had taught him. Finally, Jason threw on his black blazer. Stiffly, the male walked to the drawers next to the wardrobe and pulled the last one open. In it was expensive things, things he only wore for missions where he had to act like a rich snob. He slipped on the Gucci watch. It had been $4,500 and he had cringed when he had bought it, not wanting to spend so much money on something he hated. Unfortunately, you had to dress wealthily to get into balls and charity events hosted by billionaires. He took out his Fratelli Borgioli black Italian leather suit shoes that were $760 and put them on. The young man sprayed some Beloved Man Eau de Parfum that had cost him $280. He wasn't going to spend more than $300 on some smelly liquid. He picked up the cufflinks and put them in. At $175, they were the least expensive thing he was wearing on him. It made his stomach curl in disgust.

Jason moved back to his bathroom and stood in front of the sink. The mirror was attached to a cupboard and he opened it, revealing three shelves. He grabbed a box of contacts and closed the door. Quickly washing his hands with anti-bacterial handwash, he placed the blue contact in his eye. His time at Rattanakosin Mahinthara had calmed him and his eyes were almost normal. The whites of his eyes were the colour of snow and his iris, though still green, were no longer a glowing neon colour, settling for a darkish green. The blue contact changed his eye colour again, making it a shade in between blue and green. He opened the cabinet again and grabbed the hair products. With an ease that came from doing the action repeatedly, Jason put the plastic gloves on and got the black dye, pouring it onto his hand and combing it into the white patch of hair on his head. He had done it plenty of times when he hadn't needed to be in public, often wanting to forget about how the Pit's had changed him. He waited for it to dry then got the hair gel and began to comb back his hair. He washed the excess off and nodded at his appearance. Jason looked like a normal, rich male.

The dark haired man walked out of the room and grabbed his keys and exited the house. He entered his garage and moved to where he kept his bikes and picked the black one. Jason wheeled it outside the garage and swung a leg over it, turning it on. He steered the bike out of the alleyway and accelerated, making his way to Wayne Manor.

* * *

Jason dropped his bike in the bushes. He had come up the road to the side of the manor, a less used road and so no one would notice the bike. Just in case, he pulled more leaves over it to cover it. He ran along the lawn, making sure no one saw him, and jumped over the brick fence that separated the house from the gardens. He made his way around the house until he came to a side door. He straightened his tie and walked through the door. Jason placed his hands in his trouser pockets and sauntered into the room Bruce used to hold his parties. He had a small grin on his face as the girls whispered about how hot he was but he didn't stop to talk to them. His eyes scanned the room, trying to find someone. He continued to move as he looked but froze when someone behind him said his name.

"Jason?" He turned his head slightly to see Dick looking at him with surprise. Jason sighed and walked faster. Dick called out his name again and followed him.

"Great," Jason muttered to himself and weaved through the crowds of people. Dick continued to follow him, his time in the circus allowing him to bend his body to get through the crowds. Suddenly he saw a familiar face.

"Mrs Brown. Richard here wanted to talk to you," he told the old lady, an arm around her waist to turn her around and face Dick. Dick scowled at him but smiled as the lady looked at him to keep up appearances. "I think he wanted to talk about Queen Elizabeth the Second's Diamond Jubilee." Jason knew the English woman loved talking about the royal family, he used to chat with her when he was Robin. The woman smiled and began to talk to Dick about Queen Elizabeth. Dick glared at him over her head and he grinned down at him, giving him a two fingered salute before slipping away. He continued to walk, eventually finding the person he was looking for. He headed in that direction, spotting Tim Drake heading to them too. He sped up and managed to get to them before him and tapped them on the shoulder. They turned around to see him.

"Jay-"

"Jay-a-weenie, madam," he introduced. He bowed and took her hand, pressing a kiss to the back of her hand. "May I have this dance?"

"Of course," Steph laughed at his name and let him drag her to the dance floor. She began to resist when they got closer. He turned to look at her.

"What's wrong?"

"I... Can't dance," she admitted. Jason grinned at her and tugged her forwards.

"Just follow my lead," he told her. "Place yer right hand in mine and yer left on my shoulder." Steph did as he instructed and he placed a hand on her hip. The music began and he started moving, Steph following him.

"Jay-a-weenie? Seriously?" She asked.

"I was gonna go for Bruce-eesa-weenie, but you had started saying my name." Steph laughed at that. "Why were you in the corner on yer own?" He asked, pulling her into a twirl.

"I ... wasn't sure what to do," she admitted.

"Yeah, first balls are tough."

"I was hoping... Tim would be with me," she spoke quietly.

"Well, if it's any help, he was walking to you before I asked you to dance." Steph perked up.

"Really?!"

"Yup. He's lookin' at us right now," he informed her, looking above her head to see Tim in the crowd.

"Really, where?" Steph asked, turning her head to try and find him. Jason stopped her from doing so.

"Stop actin' eager," he told her. Steph nodded and calmed down.

"Is he looking at us? Is he jealous?" She asked Jason sighed and rolled his eyes.

"Yes, he's looking at us. Yes, he's jealous. I can tell by the way his arms are crossed and that weird half-pout half-frown he has and the way his pupils are wide and he's turning red from rage at someone else touching you that's not him and -"

"Okay, you can stop now, Jay." Jason shrugged.

"Ask someone who can read body language. Like Cass. Ask her."

"Maybe I will." Steph quietened down and relaxed, enjoying the rest of the dance. When the music stopped, Jason bowed and she did a little curtsey. Someone tapped him on his back, just below his shoulder blade. He turned and saw Tim. Tim took a deep breath, about to say something.

"Yeah, yer can have the next dance," Jason told him, stepping away from Steph so Tim could take his place.

"Errr...." Jason rolled his eyes at Tim and walked off the dance floor. By that time, Dick had gotten away from Mrs Brown and had told Bruce about his arrival. Jason watched with amusement as the two of them made their way towards him, one in front of him and the other behind. The only way he could go was right, which was where he was planning to go. He threw a smirk at Bruce, the old man probably thinking he had hidden a bomb under a table. Or maybe he was here to attack someone. He laughed out loud at that thought, gaining a few stares. He smiled at them and continued to make his way into the shadowy corner.

"Hey, Cass."

"Hey, Jay-a-weenie," she greeted.

"How did you know that?" He asked.

"I can... lip read," she told him.

"When did you see me?" He grinned.

"When you started ... making your way... to Steph."

"Observant." Cass shrugged, moving slightly to see behind him and saw the two males walking to them. "Want to dance?" Cass looked at him in shock. "What? These things are tricky, especially if you don't have anyone to help you through them. We can go upstairs and dance, you can still hear the music and there's no one to see." Cass nodded, pushing off the pillar she had been leaning on and linked her arm with his. He escorted her to the side stairs and walked up it. Cass turned back and glared at the two males tailing them, shaking her head. They stopped and let them leave.

Jason found a side room and once again fell into the position of dancing. Unlike Stephanie, he didn't have to tell Cass where to put her arms. She was a pretty good dancer, him telling her that as they moved across the room, spinning her so her blue skirt spun out.

"Was... watching the others... dance," she told him. Jason nodded and continued to dance to the music softly drifting up, Cass' head resting on his chest. The music came to an end and they pulled apart, Jason bowing and Cass curtseying.

"Again?" She asked and Jason smiled and pulled her to him. They moved around the room in time to the slow music, neither one of them speaking. When the music stopped, they broke apart suddenly as they heard clapping. They looked to the doorway to see Steph leaning on the frame and smiling at them.

"Hey, guys." Steph grinned at them.

"Hey, Steph," Jason greeted. Cass held her hand out and Steph moved to join them. It was more awkward dancing with a third person but they managed it, laughing as Jason spun them. They broke apart after the third dance, falling onto the chairs to catch their breath.

"That was..." Steph panted. "Fun. God my feet hurt."

"Take your shoes off," Jason told her, a boyish grin settling on his face. She bent down, putting one leg on top of the other and began to take her heels off.

"You too, Cass," Jason told the girl, sitting upright and pulling his own shoes off.

"Why?" Cass asked but did so anyway. She reached down and pulled the laces of her converses and toed them off.

"You all wearing socks?" He asked with a grin.

"No. Why do I need them?" Steph asked as she massaged her tender feet. Jason sighed and looked around to try and find something that could be used as socks.

"I have.. some." Cass reached into the side of her bra and pulled out a sock, repeating the action on the other side.

"Why do you have socks in your bra?" Jason asked as she threw them at Steph.

"For when... she gets..... .... blisters!" Cass told him. Jason stood up and pulled Cass up. He walked over to Steph who had finished putting her socks on and helped her up. He grabbed them both by their hands and walked out of the room, looking both ways down the corridor. Seeing no one, he tugged them out of the room and began to run down the hallway.

"What.. are you doing... Jay-son?" Cass asked as she pulled up her skirt and ran with him. Steph, knowing what he was about to do, stopped running and let her feet slide along the polished floor as Jason dragged her along. Jason stopped running, jumping and sliding along the floor, Cass copying him. She started laughing as they slid quickly down the corridor. They slowed down but not in time, crashing into the wall. They stuck their hands out and caught themselves, lessening the impact slightly. The girls fell down with laughter but Jason made his way to the window, pulling it up and sticking his head out as he looked up.

"Whatcha doin', Jason?" Steph asked when she saw him hanging out the window.

"Yer can see the stars," Jason remarked.

"What? No way!" Steph moved to the window, elbowing Jason out of the way to see them. "Oh wow, you really can."

"They... are just stars. You... see them... every night," Cass told them confused.

"No you don't, Gotham's too smoggy, you don't see 'em that often," Jason told her.

"Cass trained in a less populated part of a city, so there was less light pollution and she could see the stars," Steph explained.

"Lucky," Jason told her as he climbed out of the window.

"What are you doin' Jason?" Steph asked as he began to climb the wall. He looked back down at the two girls

"Goin' onto the roof," he said as if it was obvious. Cass nodded and moved to the window, clambering out and beginning to climb. Jason continued.

"Wait!" Steph said. He turned to look down at her.

"Come up," he called down to her.

"I can't! My dress won't allow movement in me shoulders," Steph complained. Jason sighed and made his way down again. He hung upside down over the window, legs hooked in the ivy that went up the wall, and reached back into the house. He picked Steph up by the armpits anf tugged her through the gap, moving his left arm over her shoulder to pin her to his chest. He curled around so he wasn't upside down and started climbing up again. Steph helped him, wrapping her arms and legs around him but he kept a hand under her butt and climbed one handed. Cass was waiting on the roof for them. She helped Steph onto the roof then held her hand down for Jason to take. He looked at it for a second then placed his hand in hers, knowing she wouldn't let him drop six floors down to the ground. When he was up on the roof, he walked to the middle and laid his blazer on the roof and gestured for the girls to sit on it.

"Won't it get dirty?" Steph asked. Jason shrugged.

"Who cares? I'm rich enough to buy another one." The girls sat down on it, Jason laying down to their right. They looked up at the stars. Jason folded his arms behind his head.

"That's the north star," Steph told them, raising a hand to point to it.

"You know about stars?"

"Not much about astronomy, just Polaris," she admitted.

"Yer mom taught yer that?" Jason asked.

"Dad actually. One of the few nice memories I have of him."

Cass pointed at a collection of stars, "Sirius," she gave its name then pointed to another. "Draco."

"You know the constellations, Cass? That's so cool," Jason told her as he turned his head to look at her.

"Cain taught... me. For... survival only." She looked sad and Steph and Jason both wanted to cheer her up.

"I dunno, Cass. Neither of those really help with survival. Maybe yer dad wanted to bond with you?" Jason said. Cass perked up at that.

"Hah, just realised that we all had crap, villainous fathers," Steph said.

"Dude, my dad hardly counts as a criminal compared to the Cluemaster and assassin Cain," Jason told her.

"Still... a criminal. We will... let you... in our... little group," Cass joked. Jason laughed at her words. He turned to the stars when a thought occurred to himself. He sat up and looked them, a mischievous glint in his eye.

"Who wants to steal the Batmobile?" Two wicked grins looked back at him, giving him their answer.


	8. His Family

They snuck back into the Manor and made their way to Bruce's study so they could get into the Batcave, though Steph forced them on a detour so she could collect her shoes that she had left behind. They were her favourite pair and she wasn't leaving them. At the study, they put the clock to the right time, the time of Bruce's parent's deaths, and walked through it, Jason grumbling at how tight it was and questioning how Bruce managed to fit through the narrow gap. When they got to the start of the stairs, Steph bent over to put her shoes on.

"What? I'm not gunna walk down these stairs in just socks," she explained. Jason turned to Cass, about to roll his eyes when he saw her lift her arms up. The ex-assassin blinked innocently up at him and he sighed before turning around. Cass stepped closer and jumped onto his back, her right hand gripping her left wrist instead of his neck. Once her legs were wrapped securely around his waist, he turned and made his way down the stairs.

The two girls went to where all the uniforms were hung up, each having one in the Batcave. They hurriedly changed and went back to where Jason was leaning on the Batmobile.

"Ready?"

"Wait, you have to wear a costume too," Steph began. Jason raised an eyebrow at her statement.

"Why? The Batmobile has tinted windows, no one will know it's me behind the wheel... Well except Bruce."

"You have to have a.... uniform to .... drive the Batmobile," Cass told him. Jason sighed at the two girls in front of him.

"I don't think Bruce hangs my costume in here," he told them, sweeping his hand around the Cave. The two females just grinned at him. "What?"

"Well.... You can just borrow parts of their uniforms," Steph told him, pointing a thumb at the rest of the uniforms. Jason sighed but went along with them, walking over to where they all were hung. The closest one to his height in the Batfamily was Bruce and so Jason had to take his boots and his grey Batman uniform. He left the cowl and cape though. A second later and Cass had Dick's batons in her hands. He rolled his eyes but let her put them on his back. Steph came running with several belts and a cape. The cape she threw over his head. It was the yellow edges that helped him guess whose it was, as well as the size. He reached up and moved Robin's cape into a more comfortable position whilst Steph looped Tim's belt around his waist. She hummed when she couldn't clasp the belt ends together. Tim had a rather narrow waist and so Steph was forced to clip the belts higher up where they could actually go around him. Cass slapped on one of Dick's domino masks on, Jason scrunching his nose at the tightness. Each one were specifically designed for them, so the one he was wearing didn't fit his face very well. They stepped back and looked at them, having the audacity to look proud.

"How do I look?" He asked, striking a classic superhero pose, hands on his hips. They smiled and nodded at him.

"What should we call him?" Steph wondered.

"It should have.. all their names.. in it," Cass spoke. Steph nodded.

"Red-Bat-Wing-Robin?"

"Night-Bat-Robin-Robin?"

"That one has too many Robins." Jason sighed as they continued to think of a name for him.

"How about Red-Night-Robin-Man?" He asked. The girls hummed but eventually agreed, probably swayed at the glare he sent them.

"Alright, Batgirl, Black Bat and Red-Night-Robin-Man hittin' the streets!"

They walked to the Batmobile, Jason coughing and raising an eyebrow when Steph moved to the driver's seat.

"What?"

"I've stolen a wheel from this car, I think I get to drive it first." Steph huffed but moved to the passenger side. Jason got in, waiting for Steph to jump in. Cass was in the middle seat in the back, already strapped in and ready to go. When Steph had buckled her seat belt, Jason shifted the gear and accelerated, speeding down the road until the car shot out of the Cave. Jason grinned and pushed the pedal further down as they sped down the road. Within a few minutes they were whizzing around in the city, Jason expertly swerving from one lane to another and overtaking the slower cars. Steph and Cass were having the time of their lives, judging by their whoops of joys as he continued to speed along Gotham's roads. Steph reaching forward and began tinkering with the controls of the Batmobile.

"What you doin'?" Jason asked, one hand on the steering wheel, the other on the gear stick.

"Tryna get music," Steph told him. She hummed as she continued to press the buttons. Outside, the Batmobile's lights flickered on and off. She pressed one button and suddenly the weapons hidden popped out. "Ooops."

Cass leant forward and clicked a few buttons. A few seconds later and music began to pour from the speaker. Steph sent her a smile and took over, trying to find some good music.

"Oh, if there's Shakira, play that," Jason told her. Before she could answer him, an angry voice came through the speakers.

"What are you three doing?" Bruce spoke in his Batman voice, his anger clear.

"Just takin' the baby out for a lil' run. She sure does purr," Jason answered him nonchalantly.

"Turn around and get back into the Batcave. Now." Steph was the one to answer him, humming for a second before fiddling with the screen in front of the gear stick.

"Sorry B, but you're breaking up on us. We're in a tunnel." Before Bruce could reply, she clicked a few more buttons and cut his connection. Jason took his eyes off the road for a second to throw an impressed look at her.

"So you can hang up on him but you can't turn the radio on?"

"Shut up. We can't pick and chose our skills."

They drove for a little while longer before Jason stopped. They were at the end of an alley, a crumbling wall in front of them.

"Now, which one's the button for the roof?" Jason mumbled, beginning to press the buttons.

"No, it's this one," Steph told him clicking a few more buttons. A second later and a massive bang rang out. They all slowly looked up as they saw the wall begin to crumble down. All three of them stared wide-eyed at the massive hole in the middle of it, scorch marks blackening the bricks around the hole.

"Oooops," Steph muttered, wide eyes not leaving the place where they had accidentally fired a small explosive at.

"Back up?" Cass asked.

"Back up." Jason agreed, shifting so he could reverse out of the alley, eyes still on the wall in front of the car. The car was silent as it moved out of the alley and onto a bigger road.

"Soooooo, we don't tell anyone about this." Jason looked at the girls who nodded back at him. He put the car in gear and sped away from the crime scene, not stopping until they were out of the city and in the suburbs. He took them to an empty car parking lot and began to spin the car in tight circles, leaving tire tracks as they screamed with joy. After a while, Steph wanted to have a go.

"Lemme have a go," Steph whined. Jason laughed at her but obediently slowed the car to a halt.

"Okay, we have one of two ways to do this. One, swap seats in the car," Steph immediately began doing this, causing Jason to yelp and pin her back down in her seat. "Or two, we figure out how to open this damn car and get out that way."

"I prefer the first way."

"Well good job we're doin' it the second way," Jason told her, beginning to jab the buttons. "Don't suppose you can do that thing again, Cass?"

A few small explosions later and the roof of the Batmobile finally slid open. Steph yelled, scrambling out of the car. Jason grinned and pressed the button to close the roof and pressed down on the pedal. Steph shrieked when she saw she the car start to move away. She jogged after them, yelling at Jason to stop. Instead, he sped up a bit more, coming to a stop a few metres away. Steph shook her fist at him but ran up to the car. Just as she was about to reach the car door, Jason moved off again. Cass giggled at his antics and Steph's reactions. A few seconds later and she tipped her head back as she let the laugh take over her fully. Once she was reduced to wheezing pants as she lay sprawled along the backs seats, a tear falling from her eye, Jason finally stopped the car and didn't drive off when Steph neared.

"I swear, if you drive off one more time, I will ... will... will do something really unpleasant!" She yelled at him as she huffed and puffed from all the running she had been forced to do. A second later and the driver's door slid up and Jason pulled himself out of the seat. He threw a grin over the top of the car and made his way to the passenger seat, the slightly too small shoes rubbing harshly against his feet.

"Okay, your turn," he told her. Steph looked suspiciously at him before breaking into a sprint. She jumped, hands landing on the roof of the car and swung her body so she slid the rest of the way over the top and landed on the other side, in front of the door. Jason quickly scrambled into the seat, not wanting her to do the same thing to him as he had done to her.

"Alright, everybody buckled in?" Steph asked, peering around to make sure both had their seatbelts in. She turned in the seat, grumbling as she leant to the right, her right hand fumbling under the bottom of the seat until she managed to find the right control that would bring the seat closer to the wheel and pedals. She gave Jason the bird as he openly laughed at her. The blonde girl glanced once more over the gear stick and other controls.

"You do know how to drive.... don't you?" He asked, apprehensively. Steph looked like she was struggling to understand what each button did and it filled Jason with dread. Without fully realising it, his right hand curled around the handle that was placed just above his window.

"Yeah, I passed on the third time.. though I was riding the Batgirl bike even though I hadn't technically passed the test." It didn't make Jason very confident and he squeezed the handle tighter, praying he would survive this. Steph accelerated without warning and steered towards the dilapidated concrete wall that ran along the perimeter of the parking lot.

"Steph! Wall! Steph!! Wall, there's a wall! STEPH!" Jason yelled, eyes growing wide as he saw the wall grow in size as they sped towards it. He turned to look at Steph and almost had a heart attack when he saw the manic face she was pulling, a massive grin and wide eyes. At the last possible second, Steph jerked the wheel and the car skidded so it was parallel to the fence. The wheels spun for a few moments before they were shooting off again. Steph steered them through some very tight turns and near misses. More than once Jason thought he was about to throw up, not because her driving was bad but because of how risky some of the moves were. Steph seemed to have fun, whooping with joy and Cass also seemed to be enjoying being thrown from side to side. Jason's death grip on the handle slowly loosened as he began to trust in Steph's driving.

With one final tight corner, Steph slowed to a halt. She turned, a bright grin on her face, and took in her two passengers before bursting out in laughter. The other two both followed in her joy, the adrenaline packed journey leaving them unable to do anything else but laugh.

"I gotta hand it to you," Jason began, "you sure can drive." Steph flipped her long hair at the compliment and beamed at him.

"I know, right! That was what I tried to tell the instructors but they didn't listen. So I clipped a curb, knocked a mail box down and almost killed an old lady? We both survived the trip, I totally should have passed." She turned and looked at Jason's face, him looking incredulously at her. "I'm joking."

"My turn, yes?" Cass piped up from the back.

"Sure," Jason agreed. Steph whipped her head around to look at him, her mouth gaping open before she whipped it back to Cass, about to tell her to not leave her seat, only to find her gone. "Why are you acting like that?" Jason couldn't help but ask.

"Do you know what bad a driver Cass is?" She asked but couldn't continue as Cass tapped on her window. Steph turned to face the wind screen, fingers tapping out a cross on her torso as she whispered, "please let me live through this." Her fingers trembled as she unbuckled the seat belt and slid out of the seat to stand outside and make her way to the back seats.

"She's making a big deal out of nothing, right?" Jason asked Cass. The girl stopped tapping on the controls to turn her head and look at him. Her eyes fluttered closed and she smiled at him. Jason was just able to keep the coo at how cute she was from getting out. Cass directed her attention back to the wheel and a determined expression settled onto face as her brown eyes swept across the open ground like she was plotting her path.

Without warning the car shot forward. Steph was been prepared for it, having been in a car with Cass driving before, and had braced herself by placing her hands on the two seats in front of her. Jason, not used to Cass' driving, was thrown forward and then backwards, the back of his head hitting the headrest with a muffled thump. His head was then swung to the right as Cass harshly yanked the wheel to the left. The black car screeched in that direction, skid marks leaving a trail of where they had been. Jason didn't have time to smell the burning rubber as Cass was already accelerating onwards. The man plotted where Cass was looking so seriously at only to find a pile of rocks.

"No!" He told her but Cass refused to budge. His hands moved to grab the handle, both fists clutching onto it as he watched the rocks become ever closer. He had thought that Cass would be a great driver- she had been able to play the music and the way she had acted just before driving had given him the wrong impression of her skills. At the very last second, his sister tugged the wheel. Jason yelped as the right side of the car hit the rocks and skidded in circles out of control. They all sat frozen when the car eventually came to a halt not daring to move as they got over the accident.

"Oops," Cass offered, shrugging her shoulders, daring to give them a small smile. Jason was too busy gripping the handle and sitting rigidly in his seat to reply. Steph was not much better, her whole body was tense as she stared out of the wind screen.

"Cass," Jason began, not tearing his gaze from the corner of the roof he had been staring out. "Do you actually know how to drive?"

"Nope."

"THEN WHY ARE YOU DRIVING?!?!" Jason yelled at her. She slumped down in her chair a little and turned her big, doe eyes to him.

"I wanted to drive too?" She told him, making it sound like a question. Jason dropped his left hand from its death grip on the handle and dropped it onto Cass' head squeezing it with his might.

"YOU SHOULD HAVE TOLD US YOU COULDN'T DRIVE BEFORE YOU DROVE!!!" He let up on the grip he had on Cass' head but didn't take his hand off of her head. She looked up pitifully through her lashes at him as his hand had pushed her head down so her chin almost rested on her chest.

"Will you teach me?" She asked, eyes blinking cutely. Jason huffed and looked away before sighing again.

"Alright," he agreed, curling his hand into a fist and drove his knuckles into Cass' scalp to give her a noogie. The girl folded her body in, legs being brought up to her chest as she wriggled in her seat to get away from him. Noogie completed, Jason switched into his serious mode and began asking her about her experiences with driving, in order to get an understanding of where she was. It turned out it wasn't that good.

With Steph's help, Jason managed to teach Cass how to change gears- turned out the Batmobile could automatically do that, as well as drive which was why Cass' skills were so abysmal- drive in a safe, slow manner and park. The parking lot came in handy in teaching her that, as well as parallel parking. Unfortunately, they had to wrap it up as they had stolen the Batmobile for almost two hours. Jason had disabled the tracker in the car but Bruce probably had placed more than one on the car and had other ways to find his car. The gala would keep his attention but Bruce would eventually find a way to get out of it in order to don the cape and mask and patrol his streets and the two of them needed to be gone by that time. Jason was exceedingly happy that both Cass and Steph let him drive back to his safe house that the girls had turned into an apartment, and more importantly, a home. He was by far the safest driver of the three. Still, Jason was an adventurous man and so he took the long way back to his apartment, putting the pedal to the metal as he raced down the highway, all three of them relishing the feeling that the fast speeds granted them.

Jason stopped a block away from his apartment and Steph and Cass clambered out of the car whilst Jason reached over to the controls to put the location back on so that the others could collect the car. Or give the commands for the car to make its own way back. He got out after he had fixed it, watching the girls scale up the wall that was next to the car. Cass was as agile as a spider monkey and nimbly made her way to the top. Jason grinned up at her as she sat on the edge, legs swinging as she waited for them. She beamed down at him and he rolled his shoulders readying his body for the short climb. The ascent was quick and easy, it disappointingly didn't leave Jason panting. Once they had all regrouped on the top of the building, Cass darted out and slapped her right hand on his chest.

"Tag!" Steph screeched and jumped away from Jason, following Cass' idea to run away from him. They raced over the roof, laughing whilst Jason just stared at them blinking slowly in shock. They two girls stopped when they noticed he wasn't with them. They turned to look at him having already jumped onto the neighbouring building. Jason watched them as they cocked their heads, trying to understand why he wasn't chasing after them. Truthfully, Jason hadn't played Rooftop Tag since.... well, even he wasn't sure. It was something too childish for his Batgirl to do with him- Rooftop Tag had been something that Dick and Barbara had done so the girl didn't want to do it with little Jason as well after Dick had basically abandoned her- and there hadn't been anyone else to play with him. Dick had done it once or twice when he had come to Gotham to work together on a case but it hadn't been that fun, Dick's uncertainty over Jason had soured the playful game.

"C'mon ol' man!" Steph goaded. A grin broke out on Jason's face and he sprinted towards them, the two girls rushing away with twin laughs. He managed to catch up with Steph and tagged her, flipping back, and over the ledge, when she tried to tag him back. He let out a cackle as she gave a shout of panic at seeing him fall, his body flipping so he could shoot a line to a building on the other side. He landed with a roll and gave Steph a little wave. She rose her fist at him but was distracted when Cass decided to swoop down the street Jason had just crossed, on her own line. With a huff, Steph took out her own grappling gun and followed them, somehow managing to tag Cass. A millisecond later she was tagged again so she set off with Jason as her target instead.

They managed to make their way to Jason's apartment, sprinting over roof tops and jumping between building gaps, with a grapple line being shot every once in a while. They landed on the metal balcony all panting and clutching stitches. Jason's hands were shaking with the exhaustion that it took him a few seconds to unlock his house. When he had managed to do it, he pushed up the window with a flourish and let the two girls in first then scrabbled in after them. He was left slightly disorientated as his lenses didn't automatically switch to night vision like it did with his helmet. He tapped the side of the domino mask but that did nothing so he moved around and opened the curtains so that more of the streetlights could brighten the room. When he turned back from tying the curtains back, Steph and Cass had finished picking the glass table up and moving it away. They moved back to the now freed space and plopped down, panting and staring at the ceiling.

"Close the curtains," Steph told him.

"Please," Cass added, elbowing Steph. The blonde girl sighed and possibly rolled her eyes, Jason wasn't sure in the dark, but repeated the polite pleasantry. Jason definitely rolled his, tutting as he turned and yanked the curtains shut. They waited with bated breath as slowly the room was lit by the glowing white stars that they had stuck to the ceiling for fun. Jason remembered the day well. Cass had sat on his shoulders and placed them whilst Steph had stood on a kitchen chair but she had complained too much until it had ended with each girl on a shoulder. He wasn't sure how, but the girls had managed to find packets of stars that were whites, light blues and lilacs only; none were a green and Jason was thankful for their thoughtfulness as he knew the normally green fluorescences would trigger him and make him think of the green Lazarus Pits.

The male vigilante made his way to the kitchen relying on muscle memory to not hit any walls. In the kitchen, he made his way to his three fridges. The middle one was filled with groceries whilst the one on the left was filled with cakes and biscuits and the one on the right housed all the spare food he had made. He opened that one and pulled out the pizza. He also took out some cookies and the chocolate cake from the other fridge. As the oldest one there, he tried to be responsible and took out some fruit for them to eat. At the bottom, the width of all three of the steel doors, was his freezer. Jason bent down and pulled the drawer open, rummaging around until he found the tubs of ice cream. The male stacked them all up, grabbing a few forks and spoons and placed them on the very top before he scooped everything up and carried them into the room where the girls were.

Cass and Steph had already stripped to their under armour which was slightly more comfortable to rest in. Jason placed all the food next to Steph's head, who squealed at it, and then walked into his room to change into some much cosier. He chose some black sweatpants and snagged two of his shirts for the girls in other room. When he walked in, Steph was scoffing her face with the ice cream whilst Cass turned to him, her dainty hand reaching out for a top before she had even seen him. In the time he had taken to change, she had stood up and gotten three glasses of milk and her attention was focused on dunking a cookie in it. Jason ambled to her, getting down on one knee and snatched her hand with his free hand, marvelling at how small hers was compared to his, and brought it to his lips to press a kiss on the back of it. His lips stretched into a smile as he saw her tense up before her head shot to look at him. He knew her well enough to know she would be lightly blushing at the action. She took the shirt from his, suddenly turning shy from his kiss. Jason chuckled at her and gave the other top to Steph.

Jason relaxed on the plush rug, laying on his back and closing his eyes to give the two girls privacy as they changed into his clothes. His right hand fumbled around until it closed around a cookie and he brought it to his lips, it tasting even better with his eyes closed. The girls purposefully made themselves as loud as possible as they made their way to him so as not to startle him. Jason grinned as he felt the two of them lay themselves down on either side of him. Cass curled up by his side whilst Steph, more forward in her affection, prodded him in his right arm until he relented and spread both his arms out so they could pillow their heads on his biceps. He felt Cass worm away from him, and immediately he was yearning for her warmth and lithe body to press against his side again so he could protect and give her the love she deserved. He heard her fiddle with something but was distracted with Steph placing something cold at his lips. He obediently opened only to have the taste of Neapolitan ice cream wash over his taste buds. Steph moved to feed herself; Jason heard a clinking sound and wondered briefly if she had changed the spoon to feed herself or is she had used the same one as Jason had. He found, with surprise, that he didn't really mind which one she had done.

Music came from the sound system he had installed as Cass finally completed what she wanted. Instantly, she was by Jason's side again tucked into him. Jason let out a deep breath, closing his eyes as he let himself relax with two of the few people he loved and cared for the most. The music drifted over them as they laid there, feeding each other and staring at the lit ceiling. The sounds from the speakers would fill the silences and Jason wanted nothing more than to live in this moment.

"I... thank you," he told them, staring up at the ceiling so he wouldn't lose his nerve. He needed to thank the girls for what they had done for him. "You've done so much for me. You've been there for me, more than anyone else. You didn't take my bullshit at all... you just gave me companionship. You don't know how I've missed having someone to talk to, missed having friends. You've pulled me out of that hate-filled, angry hole that I was drowning in. I can't thank you enough."

"You don't have to," Steph told him, turning so she could plaster herself along his right side. The blonde threw a leg over Jason's, trying to destroy any space in between them.

"It is what... fri-ends do," Cass told him, wrapping her left arm around him. "You would do the... same for us."

"Not friends," he told them, pulling his arms up so he could wrap them around the two girls who had given him love and friendship and support, an ear to talk to and a shoulder to cry on when no one else would. He cradled the two girls closer to him, for the first time, feeling like a big brother with their heads resting on his chest. "Family."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> .... it's the end.... I think this is my first multichapter fic that I've completed. Omg it feels weird, I can't actually believe it's completed. Anyway, I wanted to thank everyone who has left kudos or comments. I know that this fic has taken forever to be completed, or even updated, as some of my other fics have taken priority so a massive thank you to all who have waited patiently for me to update. I really, really hope you enjoyed reading this story as much as I have enjoyed writing it.


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